


Turning Tables

by orphan_account



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Allison Wants REVENGE, Angst, Derek Needs Therapy, Humor, Jackson Is An ASSHOLE!, Jealousy, M/M, Moving On, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-04-02
Updated: 2013-06-17
Packaged: 2017-12-07 05:53:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 30
Words: 27,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/745039
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A crush is just the beginning as danger closes in on Stiles and his friends.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Stiles Stilinski fell in love; he fell hard. He could remember the moment he wanted to marry Lydia and he could admit that yes, he had been a bit obsessed with her. Stiles, however, never ever thought he would fall for someone like Derek Hale. Grumpy, broody and just plain annoying, he was like Angel on a bad day. Really, Stiles saw himself with more of a Spike but the heart wants what it wants. Apparently, it had a yen for a emotionally constipated werewolf. 

Not only was Stiles hopeless in love with Derek but he could pinpoint the exact moment when he felt the damn butterflies. He had been in the pool trying to hold the werewolf’s head above water when his heart began to beat a mile a minute. It wasn’t until Stiles had to let go of Derek, in order to get his phone before the Kanima killed them that he almost had his first panic attack in months. 

Realizing he could lose Derek in that moment, he dropped his cell into the water and went to rescue the werewolf. Unwilling to let go, Stiles held him onto until Scott finally showed up. Derek was alive but it was too late for the teen’s heart. He was in love with a man who could never, would never love him back.


	2. Chapter 2

Stiles, of course, decided to keep his little discovery to himself. So he opted for pinning on his own instead confiding in his best friend. After all Scott was too busy with his melodramatic on and off romance with Allison to pay any attention to Stiles. Scott’s abandonment of him, led Stiles to becoming friends with Danny. Although at first his fellow lacrosse player couldn’t stand him, the goalie warmed up to Stiles during Chemistry. Apparently being a studious lab partner who geeked out on Batman was points in Stiles’ favor.

So while Scott was off sneaking around with Allison for clandestine dates, Stiles was either at home actually spending some times with his dad or hanging out with Danny. Mostly he tried to keep his mind off of Derek. Stiles believed that he was doing a good job of hiding his feeling until Scott, who had was on the outs with Allison for about the fifth time, finally noticed there was something wrong with his best friend. Sure, it might have due to Danny knocking some sense into the werewolf but Scott finally got his head out of his ass in time to realize that there was something on Stiles’ mind.

Scott hadn’t seen him this upset since they cancelled Fringe. The look in the teen’s face reminded the werewolf of the time Stiles found out that Lydia was dating Jackson. After that he moped around for months until he decided to have a Halo marathon to take Stiles’ mind off of the strawberry blond. Now it looked like the werewolf had to another heart to heart with the hyperactive teen. Trying to make up for his earlier douchiness, Scott waited until school was over to have a little chat with his best friend.

Bumming a ride, he fiddled with the Jeep’s stereo system before asked, “is everything okay Stiles?”

“Why do you care, you’ve been ignoring me for weeks,” he pointed out angrily.

“I guess I got a little carried away,” Scott admitted.

“Look, I love you dude. We’ve been friends since we were in diapers, Scott but I am tired of you ditching me every time Allison is around.” Stiles admonished.

“I’m sorry,” Scott said, feeling thoroughly embarrassed for treating his best friend like shit over a girl. 

“I might forgive you if there is some pizza and video games in in for me,” the hyperactive teen teased.

“You got it but first you have to tell me what’s on your mind.”

“It’s nothing,” Stiles lied, not wanting Scott to find out about his hopeless crush on Derek. 

“If you say so,” the werewolf replied, secretly planning on getting the other teen drunk. Perhaps if Stiles had enough alcohol in his system he would blurt out what was really bothering him.


	3. Chapter 3

So after another dull, boring day at school for Scott (cause when will one really need chemistry in life; unless they were going to be some sort of scientist), he bugged Stiles until they stopped off at their favorite pizzeria. They played a couple of games of pinball as their extra cheese pie was made. Once it was finished baking, Scott made an excuse for why they couldn’t go to his house so they went to the Stiles’ home instead. 

Scott’s scheme couldn’t have worked more perfectly. Everything was going according to plan for the werewolf knew that the Sheriff had a couple of cases of beer in the refrigerator and some of bottles of scotch in pantry. He also knew that Stiles’ dad wasn’t a big drinker. John only had a can of beer or glass of whatever was on hand when he had a tough day at the office. So it wasn’t like he checked to see if one of them were missing. 

While Stiles looked around for some paper plates, Scott took a couple of cans of Budweiser from the refrigerator. Finding a few, the hyperactive teen placed a two pieces of pizza on each plate. He was trying to pry some melted mozzarella from the box when Stiles saw what Scott had in his hands. Glaring at his best friend, he said, “put those back!”

“Why, it’s not like your dad is going to miss them,” a pouting Scott replied.

“No, but there is no way in hell I am going to school tomorrow with a hangover. Been there, done that and it ain’t pretty.”

“Then how else I’m suppose to get you to spill your guts,” a clueless Scott complained. 

“Well you could have asked; but I doubt I’d tell you anyway,” Stiles said as grabbed his plate. “You have a big mouth.”

“I don’t,” Scott pouted.

“You do, so no, I will not spill my guts out to you.”

“Please,” the werewolf begged before placing a third piece of pizza on his plate (he was a growing boy after all). “I promise that I wouldn’t tell anyone your dirty little secret.”

“It’s not dirty,” Stiles protested. Knowing that Scott wouldn’t leave him alone until he told the werewolf what was bother him, he gave in. “Fine, but so help me if you breath a word of this to anyone, I’ll kill you!”

“I promising,” Scott said, miming the pull of a zipper over his mouth.

“If you laugh...”

“Just tell me already!!!”

“I’m in love with Derek,” Stiles blurted out quickly.

“This is a joke isn’t it!!!”

“I’m afraid not, I am in love with Derek Fucking Hale!”

“Really? You and Mr. Tall, Dark, Broody, I’m the Alpha Hale,” Scott snickered.

“You promised!!!”

“Oh, I can totally see you two together. Him with sparking personality and you having his puppies,” Scott teased. “When is the wedding?”

“Scott...” Stiles warned.

“I can see it now; you and Derek gazing lovingly into each other’s eyes as...”

“Shut the fuck up! You’re an asshole, Scott” he said angrily.

Taking in the fear and desperation in his best friend’s eyes, the werewolf stopped mocking Stiles. It was in the moment that the clueless but well meaning teen realized that his best friend’s feeling were real. Scott, however, honestly couldn’t tell Stiles if Derek felt anything for anyone. The Alpha was emotionally constipated what with losing his family dying in a fire and Kate Argent fucking with his mind. Still if anyone could bring Derek out of his funk permanently it would be Stiles. Scott just didn’t think the older werewolf was good enough for his friend.

“Sorry, I didn’t...”

“He doesn’t know, Scott and I would appreciate if you kept this to yourself,” Stiles interrupted.

Without another word, the hyperactive teen took his loaded plate and went to his room. Hearing the door slam behind Stiles, Scott flinched. As he stood there in the kitchen, the werewolf wondered if he could get Derek to see Stiles as more than just an annoying pest.


	4. Chapter 4

So while Scott sat and plotted things that would most definitely get him in trouble, a seething Stiles was sat on his bed. As the untouched pizza grew cold, he wished that he had just kept his mouth shut. Now, all he could think about was the fact that Scott was stupid enough to tell Derek about Stiles’ undying devotion for the Alpha. This of course, led to the geeky teen plotting different ways of killing his best friend. He was pondering which undetectable poison he could put in Scott’s lunchtime soda when there was a knock on his bedroom door. 

“Go away!”

“No, especially not when I’m suppose to be whooping your ass at Halo,” Scott said.

Knowing he had no other choice but to let the werewolf in (his pride and gaming creds were on the line after all), Stiles got up from his bed and opened the door. As Scott plastered a look of innocence on his face, he made his way to his best friend’s Xbox. Unaware of how Stiles was glaring at him behind his back, Scott was thinking about fortunate he was that his friend didn’t have any superpowers like mind reading. He, however, underestimated Stiles’ ability to read people like a book. 

“You’re going to tell him aren’t you?”

“Um.. no... oh look Mario Kart,” Scott mentioned as he pointed over the games in one of Stiles’ bookcase. “Let’s play Wii instead!” 

“Don’t change the subject,” Stiles exclaimed. “I know that look, Scott! It’s the I’m plotting something look! “

“I swear...”

“I don’t want to hear it, Scott. If you breathe so much of a word about my little crush, I will kill you! If you do, I’ll know!!!!”

“Bullshit!”

“You have the worst poker face!!! How else did I know that you stole my favorite Batman action figure? It’s because you get this constipated look on your face every time you lie to me,” a pissed off Stiles pointed out.

“I was trying to help you out,” Scott muttered, wondering if Stiles knew he stole his Legolas Ken doll as well.

“You can, by not telling Derek anything!!!”

“Fine, but if you never tell him that you’re in love with him, you’ll never find out if he feels the same way about you,” a surprising perspective Scott advised.

“I already know how feels,” Stiles whispered softly before taking out Mario Kart from the bookcase next to his TV. 

Trying to ignore all the emotions boiling inside of him, the hyperactive teen shoved the game disc into his Wii. He didn’t want to tell Scott that he had first hand knowledge of what Derek thought about him. Although, he hadn’t meant to, Stiles had overheard the Alpha talking to Jackson one night during training. Scott had decided to join them for the fool moon and Stiles decided to tag along. He was sitting in the pack’s subway car, researching some of the creature in the bestiary when Derek and Jackson came in the room. 

“I am surprised that you let Scott bring along his little buddy. Especially since he such a spaz,” Jackson said, in a cocky tone of voice.

“He has his uses. He’s kind of like the pack’s Giles,” Derek admitted.

"Meaning, he does the boring stuff while you get to play the Last Action Hero.”

“Exactly.”

“So you and he aren’t...”

“God, no! Where did you get an idea like that?” Derek asked, chuckling at the thought of Stiles being his boyfriend.

“Nothing, just something Danny said.”

“Stiles is more like an annoying kid brother... you know the one you would like to get rid of but can’t.”

As they left the room to shift into their werewolf forms, Stiles sat in the subway car; tears stream down his face. He never wanted to feel like that again so he prayed that Scott listened to him and decided to keep Stiles little crush on Derek to himself.


	5. Chapter 5

Silence permeated throughout the room as the pizza grew cold and the game disc of Mario Kart laid untouched in Stiles’ Wii. Scott realizing that his friend wasn’t in the mood for company. He tried to get his mind off Derek but the young werewolf could see that he wasn’t getting through to Stiles. So after one last ditch effort to get his best friend to talk to him, Scott decided it was time to go home. 

Once he was gone, Stiles curled up in his bed and pulled the covers over his head. Wrapped his self-made cocoon, tears made their way down his cheeks once again and he tried to close his eyes. Sleep, however, wouldn’t come to him. Instead, thoughts of how inadequate he felt plagued his mind.

When he was little boy, Stiles loved when his mom would read fairy tales to him. He always believed that just like his father, mother, and Cinderella, he too would get his happily ever after. As he grew older and his mom was diagnosed with cancer, Stiles hope in fairy tales and happy endings began to fade. Still he watched as his father, John, took care of his beloved wife. He was there for everything; the chemo treatments, the hair loss and the pathetic appetite. 

Everything he did was in hopes that Cassandra Stiles would go into remission but it never happened. Stiles was only thirteen when he loss his mother to pancreatic cancer. He was there as a beautiful, vibrant woman wasted away to nothing. It was a couple of days before his birthday he not only lost a mother but a friend. She was always Stiles’ biggest ally ever when his ADHD was at it’s worst. She would always assure him how special he was.

He, of course, believed her. The idea of Princess or Prince Charming might have faded with time, but Stiles still wanted the love his saw between his parents. Even at her worst, John never left her side. When other husbands might have given up, his father helped his wife fight her disease. It was the kind of love Stiles wanted in his future. 

So when he fell for someone, he fell for them hard; hoping for them to be his happily ever after. First there was Lydia with her strawberry blond hair, pouty lips, and brain. She charmed Stiles with her looks and intelligence. They had been friends in elementary with them even getting married on the playground during recess; Scott had been their son. Then junior high came and Lydia forgot all about him for popularity and cheerleading. She barely acknowledged his existence and she ruled the school with an iron fist.

When they entered high school, Stiles knew he had lost any chance with Lydia when she started to date Jackson. To everyone but Scott, Stiles was just the annoying kid with ADHD. He wasn’t worth paying attention to. His high school career was spent on the bench at lacrosse games or in the library helping Scott with his studies. Then Scott was bit by Peter Hale and everything changed. Suddenly his best friend was popular while Stiles was seen as an accessory. 

If they wanted Scott, they had to invite Stiles because everyone knew the two were inseparable. That was until Allison came along and the hyperactive teen was once again left in the dust. It was during that time he found himself more and more in the couple of one Derek Hale, hottie werewolf extraordinaire. At first Stiles couldn’t stand him. He was too angry, broody and annoying. His feelings, however, began over the course of time.

There were moments that Derek smiled or did something that made Stiles see the Alpha in a whole different light. Unfortunately for him, he had developed a hopeless crush on Derek. After that night in the werewolf’s new layer, Stiles began to wonder if there was something wrong with him. Every day he would look in the mirror and see only failure.

Scott, Derek and hell even Jackson was undeniably good looking. They had muscles, charm and girls practically tripping over their feet for them. All Stiles saw when he glance at his reflection was an ordinary boy. He was lean and plain. It came to the point where he avoided looking at himself. Stiles didn’t want to see what he believed Derek saw every time he saw the hyperactive teen. The only thing he felt nowadays was pathetic.

As he continued to cry, alone in his room, he knew that everything his mother told Stiles being special was a lie. He was just another loser who had never been kissed. He didn’t know which hurt worse; the fact that Derek would reject him if he ever found out about Stiles’ feelings for him or the reality that he would be alone for the rest of his life.


	6. Chapter 6

Stiles was still in his room, his thoughts becoming his own enemy, when John finally came home from a long day at the office. He was about to get a drink of cold water when he heard a loud sob coming from Stiles’ room. Worried, he went upstairs to check on his son. Lately, Stiles had been acting strange.

Where they once confided in each other about almost everything, his son had been keeping secrets from him. John knew that Stiles had been lying but the sheriff was sure he had his reasons. He, however, hated to see his son hurting. Lately, he had been coming home to a very sullen teenager who didn’t want to talk. While John respected his space, perhaps it was time he had a talk with his son. He just hoped that this time Stiles would tell him what was bothering him.

Meanwhile across town Derek Hale racked with guilt was unable to go to sleep. Ever since the night of the full moon the Alpha wished that he could take every word that he had said to Jackson back. He was aware of the disdain the lacrosse captain felt for Stiles but that wasn’t the worst part of his betrayal. The cruelest part of his actions was Derek had known that the awkward teen had been listening. He had smelled Stiles in the subway car that night and yet what the Alpha had said was done on purpose. 

It was so that Derek could keep Stiles at arm’s length. He wasn’t love with him, that much was true and the Alpha wasn’t sure that feeling towards the hyperactive teenager would ever change. Derek, however, wasn’t blind towards Stiles’ attributes. Not only was he handsome but the teenager was sweet and loyal. Anyone who ended up with Stiles would be a lucky man or woman indeed. 

Derek would never be that person. He was too damaged; emotionally haunted by Kate Argent’s actions. He had loved her so much; the Alpha had wanted to make her his mate.

She betrayed his and his family by setting the Hale house on fire. Since then Derek has trusted no one. In his journey to controlling the wolf inside, he had done things he hadn’t been proud of. He had a rap sheet a mile long filled with things like theft. Everything crime Derek perpetrated in the name of revenge. All in the hopes of finding Kate one day and making her pay for what she had done.

Yet, there was a piece of Derek that still loved her. Even with the walls he had built around his heart after her treachery wasn’t enough. He wished that he could just forget Kate and move one. The huntress, however, was part of what made Derek who he was today. He was an Alpha werewolf with no need to fall in love again. This was the reason why he had said those words. Even if his feels ever altered when it came to Stiles, the teenager deserved someone better than him.

Derek’s belief that he had done the right thing, however, didn’t relieve him of this guilt. From the beginning the Alpha had sensed Stiles attraction for him. Although he tried his best to hide it, the hyperactive teen was unaware that Derek was able to detect the jump in heartbeat and the smell of sweat every time he was near. There were times that the Alpha wished that he had been honest and just told Stiles the truth. Instead, he had hurt the teenager in the worse way as possible and Derek didn’t know if he could ever forgive himself for what he done to Stiles. 

He would never fathom how much pain the teenager was in because of him. Nor could Derek imagine the damage in Stiles’ self-esteem and self-worth he caused by his words. The Alpha had made a choice that night and did what he believed was right; never knowing that he had started a chain of events that would change the course of the future. Whether for good or bad, Stiles was forever altered by Derek’s actions.

While the Alpha tried to find some rest, John knocked on his son’s bedroom door. Minutes passed when a voice followed by a sniffle said, “come in.”

After entering the messy room, covered in posters of Stiles’ favorite superheroes, John noticed his son’s red eyes and tear stained cheeks. Wishing he could hurt the person who put that look on Stiles’ face, the sheriff sat down to his on his bed. John took him into his arms and embraced him before asking, “is everything okay? Did someone hurt you?”

“I’m fine, dad,” Stiles lied as tried to discreetly wipe away the rest of his tears.

“And I’m Batman. Seriously, you know you can tell me anything.”

“It’s nothing, I promise,” the awkward teen whispered.

“I wish you would talk to me Stiles. Ever since school started you haven’t been acting like yourself. We’ve always been honest with each other before...” John responded, praying that his son would finally tell him the truth.

“There’s this boy,” Stiles blurted out, tired of keeping of everything to himself. He desperately needed someone to talk to. Since Scott wasn’t being helpful at the moment, he was willing to tell his dad some things; up to a point of course. Because there was no way in hell his dad would ever find out about werewolves. Not if he could help it.

“Is this about Danny?”

Shocked, Stiles wondered what his father knew that he didn’t.


	7. Chapter 7

“What about Danny?” the awkward teen inquired, curious to why his father thought his problems with the handsome goalie. 

“Well, the two of you have been hanging out a lot so I thought...”

“We’re just friends, dad,” Stiles interrupted quickly. 

"Okay, then tell me who this boy and where can I find him,” John said, feeling a bit confused over his son’s swift dismissal of Danny. 

“He had seen the way the other boy looked at Stiles every time the goalie had stayed over for dinner. If John didn’t know any better he would say that Danny was in love with his son. Obviously, the other teen hadn’t told Stiles how he felt yet. Perhaps if he had, his son wouldn’t be moping over some jerk who didn’t truly know the value of his baby boy.

Stiles was a great kid who was deserved someone just as special as he was. Now all John wanted to do was find the idiot who had hurt his son and kick his ass. Unfortunately, there was a downside for being the Sheriff of Beacon Hills. It meant he had to uphold the town laws and ordinances. He had to have a clean record in order to keep his job so that meant that John had to keep his temper in check. 

“I can’t tell you that, dad. Besides, my being heart broken is really my fault and not his. I fell in love with someone who could never love me back,” Stiles admitted sadly. 

“Obviously, this guy not only dumb but blind. He would have been lucky to have you. If he can’t see how special and fantastic you are Stiles, then it’s his loss,” he replied. 

“You’re just saying that because you’re my father!”

“I’m not; I am only telling you the truth. Stiles, you are a good looking boy with a bright future. You’ll find “the one” some day, I just don’t want you putting all your hopes and dreams on hold for one person who can’t see you for the treasure you truly are.”

“But I am NOT! I’m a skinny, awkward, hyperactive teenager who had nothing going for him! I’m no prize, dad!”

“I don’t know who has been telling you these lies...”

“It’s the truth; why else would he not want me!!!” Stiles yelled; his face turning red as tear began trickle down his face again.

“You couldn’t be more wrong, son. I just wish you could see yourself like I do and your mother used to,” John said, hugging his son tightly. “Sometimes I wish she was still here. She would know what to do and the right things to say. I do know if Cassandra was here, she would tell you that no matter what; you are special in your own way. If this guy you like can’t see that then screw him! You don’t need someone like that bringing you down.”

“I think you doing alright on your own,” Stiles replied with a sob. “I just don’t want be alone...”

“Let me tell you story, in high school I was like you. I was awkward and sort of geeky. It wasn’t until my senior year that I met your mother. For me, it was love at first sight; for her, not so much.”

“So how did you finally get her to go out with you?” Stiles asked as he began to calm down a little. 

“Some jerk tripped her in the hallway and I helped her with her books. I know it sounds cheesy but after that we became friends. Finally, around the time for senior prom, Cassandra agreed to go one date with me,” John reminisced.

“That’s not cheesy at all,” Stiles admitted, a smile finally returning to his face. “So you’re first date how did it go?”

“Terrible but your mother, god bless her, decided to give me a chance. Things weren't always perfect but I loved her; still do. One day, Stiles you will find what you’re looking for. Until then, please don’t settle. Find someone who will love you for you.”

“Thanks dad,” Stiles said, giving John a hug.

“Remember son, no matter what you are loved! It might not seem like it now, but things do get better,” John replied, trying to give his son some hope.

Although thinking of Derek still hurt, his dad’s words go through to Stiles. It might take awhile for him to get over the hunky Alpha but the hyperactive teen was going to try to move on. He knew it would be hard but his dad was right, Stiles deserved someone just as special as he was. After their little talk, they ate dinner as John told stories of his mom. It was the first time since Cassandra died that Stiles had heard his dad talk about his mother. While they both still missed her it was nice to talk and hear about happier times.

With a full belly and a better frame of mind, Stiles went back to his room. Looking in the mirror, the teen glanced himself and smiled. A change was coming and Derek Hale wouldn’t know what hit him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't why but I have a suddenly hankering for some Sheriff Stilinski/Chris Argent stories. Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be that many of them :(


	8. Chapter 8

When Monday rolled around, Danny was around for Stiles in the hallways and in class but he wasn’t there. Ever since he found out about Werewolves, Jackson and Scott, the computer genius had grown closer to the awkward teen. At first it was out necessity since Danny wanted to be able to help his best friend out during the full moon. Then during their little research powwows, Danny learned that he and Stiles had a lot in common; including a love for all things Batman. 

Their nights spent with the bestiary and a book of archaic Latin wasn’t the reason that Danny started to see Stiles in a whole different light. It was the question that the awkward teen asked Danny that made the goalie finally pay attention to Stiles. The day the tan teen wondered why he was even soliciting an answer from Danny. At first he thought it was because Stiles might have a crush on him and then he saw the hyperactive teen with Derek. It was then that Danny just knew that Stiles was in love with the broody, overbearing werewolf. That was the day Danny wished that things could be different; that is was him who Stiles was in love with.

As he sat in chemistry, waiting for the bell to ring, Danny wondered what had changed in the way he viewed Stiles. When the first met freshman year of high school, the goalie barely tolerated him. He figured that Stiles was just a pest who couldn’t or wouldn’t shut up. While Danny tried to keep his feeling to himself, Jackson didn’t and started to pick on the hyperactive teen. He, of course, protected Stiles whenever he could from his best friend’s wrath but Danny didn’t truly get to know the hyperactive teen. The more he learned about Stiles, the worse his little crush got. 

Before he saw how Stiles looked at Derek, Danny had planned on asking the hyperactive teen to the Winter Formal. Now his plans were dash across the rocks. It seemed like karma would continue to bit him in the ass when it came to relationship. Although Danny was nice guy, his boyfriend either cheated on him or used as some kind of sex toy. He knew things with Stiles would be different. He had seen how loyal the awkward teen was to the people he loved. It was one of the things that made Danny love Stiles.

Unfortunately, it seemed like the other boy was hopelessly in love with Derek, making Danny’s chances with Stiles impossible. After deciding to confide in Jackson about situation, the lacrosse captain told Danny to forget about Stiles. He thought that he was scraping the bottom of the barrel, when it came to his little crush on Stilinski. It wasn’t until later that he learned that Jackson had repeated to Derek exactly what Danny believed about Stiles’ feelings towards the Alpha were. Of course, that led to a huge fight between the two friends. 

So not only was Danny not talking to Jackson but Stiles was still hung up on Derek. As if his month couldn’t get any worse. Still unaware of what happened at the Alpha’s liar the night Jackson blabbed about Stiles, Danny wondered if anything was okay. After that day Stiles seem to be avoiding him and now it seemed that the awkward teen was skipping school. 

Sighing as the school bell rang one last time, Danny was about to face the blackboard when Stiles strolled into the class. Gone where the superhero shirt and baggy pants. In their place was a tight blue t-shirt and skinny jeans. It was an outfit that looked like it was picked out by Lydia instead of found in the recesses of Stiles’ closet. As he sat besides Danny, he noticed that the hyperactive teen had new growth of hair on his head instead of his normal crew cut.

“Is everything okay?” Danny asked worriedly.

“Fine, I am just trying something new,” Stiles answered.

He was about to say something else when Mr. Harris walked into the classroom and started to write about covalent bonds on the board. Danny continued to stare at Stiles as he jotted down. If he thought the awkward teen was hot before, he was every hotter now. Although there was still the fact that Stiles was hopeless in love with the broody werewolf, Danny knew he had to take his chance and ask the other teen to the Winter Formal. If he didn’t do it now, there was a possibility he could lose Stiles forever. Probably to some jerk like Jackson. 

Deciding to woo Stiles so that would he forgot all about that sourwolf, Danny hoped that his plan worked. Somehow he had to make the hyperactive teen see that there the world didn’t stop and end with Derek Hale. For there was someone else who could make Stiles happy and Danny would do anything to make Stiles see that he deserve a lot better than a cranky Alpha.


	9. Chapter 9

As Danny began to make some plans on how to get Stiles to see him more than a friend, Scott decided to time to have a conversation with Derek. Skipping school, he went to the Alpha’s lair. Scott carelessly broke his promise to his best friend by even being there in the first place. Although his heart was in the right place, the teen werewolf didn’t think things through before doing them. Now he was about to betray Stiles’ trust by confronting Derek. 

He had just entered the makeshift layer when Scott sensed that the Alpha was inside the subway car. He was about to go into when he heard Derek ask, “what are you doing here?”

“I came here to talk to you about Stiles,” Scott replied, balling his hands up into fists. 

“Not you too; first Jackson and now you want to bother me about something that is not even your business! Look, Stiles is a nice guy but...”

“But what, you’re too good for him? You’re a fucking moron Derek! Do you know how damn lucky you are?”

“Scott...”

“No, I don’t want to hear your excuses. You’re a grade A asshole. Stiles loves you have can’t even have the decency to let him know how you feel! By the way Derek, I know about what you said to Jackson. He told me everything,” He yelled, punching the Alpha in the face. “Do you know how much you hurt him? He would have given anything to be with Derek and you threw it all away by being an idiot!”

Growing, the Alpha’s eyes turned red as he looked at Scott. “I don’t love him!”

“And I am Peter Parker,” Scott proclaimed as he landed another haymaker to Derek’s stomach.

As the breath left the Alpha’s lungs, he tried his hardest not shift. He might be angry with Scott’s actions but he knew that he deserved them. Crouching on the floor, he centered himself before taking a deep breath. Red eyes turned back to green as the Alpha faced Scott once again. 

“You know nothing about me,” Derek said.

“I know you're coward! You’d rather wallow in your own self-pity than take a chance that you might be happy. “

“What I do, is none of your business.”

“It is when it’s something that ends up hurting my friend,” Scott exclaimed.

“Some friend, you dumped him as soon as you find a girlfriend,” Derek taunted him, trying deflected the fact that what the teen werewolf was saying to him was starting to get to him.

“I know, I have always been there for Stiles but he’s like a brother to me. If you’re not going to do anything with the felling that you have for him then let him down gently and let him move on!”

“He’s mine,” Derek growled feeling the wolf starting to emerge.

“You lost any rights you had to him when you decided to take coward’s out instead of telling to him.”

Disgusted with the Alpha, Scott took one last shot at Derek. Punching him in the gut, the teen walked away leaving the older man on the ground. Satisfied with his actions, he returned to school in time for economics. Before Stiles could ask Scott about his absence in chemistry, Coach Finstock pulled out some papers from his briefcase. Announcing a surprise pop quiz, the class groaned as the hyperactive teen sighed. It looked like he would be getting answers to his questions any time soon.


	10. Chapter 10

The morning seemed to drag on forever until finally it was time for lunch. As Stiles sat down next to Scott, he asked, “Where were you?”

“There was something important I had to do,” the werewolf said nonchalantly.

“You told him didn’t you?” 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

“Don’t bullshit a bullshiter,” Stiles exclaimed, noticing the guilty look on Scott’s face.

“I know what I shouldn’t have but Derek got what he deserve,” he replied, not feeling the least bit sorry for hitting the Alpha.

“What did you do?”

“Um.... nothing...”

“Tell me, Scott!”

“I might have kicked his ass”

Sighing Stiles shook his head. While he knew that Scott’s heart had been in the right place, he really wished that the other teen hadn’t decided to defend his honor. Although there was another part of Stiles that was secretly delight that Scott had given Derek a swift kick in the ass.

“It’s not that I don’t appreciate what you did for me Scott, but I’m not some damsel in distress. I can take care of myself. “

“So says the kid who was bawling his eyes out over the Big Bad wolf,” Scott teased. 

“Touché,” Stiles said, grabbing his best friend’s pudding cup.

As they “borrowing” things from each other’s lunches, Danny approached their table; tray in hand. Mostly the goalie would each lunch with Jackson so it was a bit unusual that Danny was joining them. Unaware of the look of hurt on his best friend’s face, he sat down next to Stiles. With only a mere half an hour left of lunch after Danny had snuck out of school to the local florist, the goalie smiled at Stiles and greeted the two boys with a brief hello.

“Hey, Danny,” Scott replied. “How is it going?”

“Great, I have the notes from Chemistry if you would like,” Danny offered, his smile growing at thought of the bouquet of sunflowers he had bought for Stiles. They were sitting in his locker waiting for the right moment for Danny to asked the other teen to the Winter Formal.

“Thanks!”

“So Danny what brings you to our neck of the woods?” Stiles inquired, interrupting whatever else that Scott was going to say. He had noticed the forlorn look on Jackson’s face and wondered if the two were in some kind of fight. 

A red blush graced Danny’s face as he looked down at his tray.. Swallowing, he cursed the fact that he had left the bouquet back in his locker. Things weren’t going exactly the way he planned but Danny knew it was something that couldn’t wait. Besides he had the weeks leading up the Winter Formal to woo Stiles in the way he deserved.

“I need to ask you something...”

“Oh, okay,” Stiles said, noticing the nervous look on Danny’s face. “Ask away...”

“Would you go with me to the Winter Formal,” he blurted out, all his plans flying out of the window.

Shocked, Stiles sat there silently before thinking it over. Although he really wanted to go, there was a piece of him that wished it had been Derek who had asked him. Feeling angry with himself, Stiles just wanted to move on. Danny was a nice guy and even if their one date didn’t work out at least it was something that would help Stiles to forget about the Alpha for awhile.

“Yes, I’ll go out with you.”


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So after a couple of days of debating things with myself and my muse, I pretty much know who Stiles will end up with. I just hope it doesn't disappoint you readers but I had to go with my gut.

A surprised Danny spaced out for a moment before he finally registered Stiles’ answer. Smiling, he couldn’t believe his luck. He was going to be taking the boy he was crushing on to the Winter Formal. Coming back to reality, Danny began to take to Stiles about the details of their date. He was so into tuxes, boutonnieres, and limos that he didn’t noticed neither the look of concern on Scott’s face nor the look of jealousy on Jackson’s. He was also unaware that Isaac had been eavesdropping on their conversation. 

He didn’t understand why Derek told him to keep on eye on Stiles until now. After Scott had left the Alpha catching his breath, he had summoned the beta to his side. Once Derek made his little request, Isaac went back to school. As he watched Stiles smile for the first time in weeks, he wondered if was doing the right thing by following Derek’s instructions. 

It was only because of his Alpha’s stupidity that Isaac was basically stalking Stiles in the first place. Hell, he knew Derek was mixed up when it came to his feelings. Just like Isaac’s own father had screwed him up, Kate had screwed up the older man in the worse way possible. He honestly didn’t know if Derek’s possessive nature towards Stiles was because he was the Alpha’s mate or if it was because Hale saw him as his pack brother. It was only was a question that only Derek himself could answer. What Isaac did know was that Derek and his wolf was at war with each other. 

Honestly it was tiring to watch. Isaac just wanted his Alpha back and if that meant stalking Stiles, then so be it. He, however, hoped that Derek made a decision and soon. If he didn’t get his head out of his ass, he would eventually lose Stiles. The entire situation was a mess; something only Derek could fix.

Even from where lurked, Isaac was able to see things that a few had been unable to. Like the fact Stiles had been on the fence for a few seconds before agreeing to going out with Danny. Even he knew the awkward was so hopelessly in love with Derek Hale. Isaac was also aware of Danny’s charm. If anyone could get Stile forget all about the Alpha is was him. The Hawaiian was gorgeous and smart; he was also kind and care, these were traits that Stiles appreciated in a potential partner. Another point in Danny’s favor was the fact that he wasn’t emotionally constipated like Derek. 

Isaac knew that whoever won Stiles’ heart would be a very lucky man indeed. Still there were factors that could end either so called “relationship” before it even started. One Derek still didn’t know what he wanted out of life; he was still stuck on a murderous bitch that had ripped his heart out. The other problem was the fact that Jackson was in love with his best friend and was in denial about it. Whatever happened, Isaac knew there was a potential for things to become majorly fucked up. With so much sexual tension between the four of them, Isaac just wanted to lock them in a closet and let them duke it out. 

While Danny and Stiles were unaware of Isaac’s presence, the other werewolves in the room noticed that they were being watched. Discreetly getting up from their tables, Scott and Jackson went to confront the Beta about his actions. Isaac was taking mental notes to bring back to Derek when the two boys approached him.

“What do you think you’re doing? Scott growled.

“Eating lunch,” he said nonchalantly.

“Don’t lie, I saw how you were looking at Danny,” Jackson pointed out.

“I wasn’t doing anything and while we’re on the subject....”

“Shut up, Isaac,” Jackson warned the beta.

“Oh, please like I don’t know about your little thing for you best friend,” Scott said, rolling his eyes. “Now, stop trying to change the subject.”

“I am not in love with Danny!”

“Yeah right Jackson. Anyway, I was just minding my own business.”

“Like I believe you, just tell Derek to leave Stiles alone. He doesn’t need Hale butting into whatever might be happening between Danny and Stiles.”

“Nothing is happening between them,” Jackson growled.

“I am about to look you and Derek somewhere together, because you’re both stupid and stubborn. Now this is what you’re going to do, you’re going to let Stiles and Danny had their one date! If things don’t work out between the two of them, then you can do whatever you want!” Scott offered.

“No!”

“Look you had your chance with Danny last year but you screwed it up when you chose Lydia over him...

Not many people knew but before Lydia came in the picture, Danny and Jackson had been dating. When Junior came around and Jackson became captain of the lacrosse team, he dumped Danny like yesterday’s news. It had hurt the other boy immensely when a week after their breakup Jackson began to date Lydia. The only reason Scott knew this was because a drunken Jackson told him during his girlfriend’s birthday party.

“You promised not to say anything,” Jackson said, angrily.

“And you promise not to be an asshole to Stiles anymore so I guess we both lose!” Scott replied, itching for another fight.

“Guys look,” Isaac interrupted; jerking his heads towards the table Stiles and Danny were sitting. 

As they watch the two boys laugh and gesture wildly, they knew they had to leave things alone for now. After the Winter Formal, Jackson would make sure that Scott knew that Stiles and Danny were fair game for him and Derek.


	12. Chapter 12

Unaware of the three betas watching them, Stiles tried to forget all the drama with Derek for awhile as he made plans with Danny. Deciding to go the Men’s Warehouse after school, they decided that both go with the color of navy for their vests. The more they talked about the Winter Formal, the more excited Stiles became. He had never been on a date before and the thought that someone actually like enough to asked him out had surprised Stiles. Still there was a piece of him that was a little bit nervous about the situation.

What did Danny expect from him? Would he want a kiss at the end of the night? A thousand questions went through his mind as talked to Danny. With warmth in his brown eyes, the Hawaiian boy was good looking and sweet. Any guy would be lucky to have him. Hell, if Stiles didn’t have a thing for bad boy, broody werewolves... maybe just maybe he would have went after Danny. 

Berating himself for things about Derek once again, Stiles wonder if there was something truly wrong with him. Why did he love someone who treated him like crap? Didn’t his father try to tell Stiles that he was better than that? Still it he couldn’t help but remember the way he felt every time he looked at Derek. The sweaty palms, the rapid heartbeat, his hormones going crazy; everything within Stiles was telling him that the Alpha was the one. Had he been wrong? Perhaps, he was.

Somehow, Stiles couldn’t help but think that he had put Derek on some kind of pedestal. The teen definitely knew he wouldn’t be able to move unless he let himself do so. Danny was a perfect solution to his little problem. Over their course of their friendship, Stiles found many redeeming qualities about Danny. He was the complete and utter opposite of Derek. Not had did he seem respectful but Danny didn’t treat him like a kid brother. He couldn’t explain but when the other boy asked Stiles out, he felt attractive for the first time in his life. 

He never felt that way with Derek. With the Alpha, it was like Stiles was wearing an unattractive pair of footie pajamas while carrying a teddy bear. Nothing seemed to move Derek to look at him as a potential partner. He always treated Stiles like some pesky kid that needed to be tucked into bed before eight o’clock. While he dreamed of naked tryst with Derek; Stiles believed that the Alpha would rather watch Barney with him then have sex with him.

Danny, however, looked at him with heat in his eyes. He truly saw Stiles as being sexy and it was something that threw the awkward boy for a loop. No one had ever saw him in that way; it was always Scott that they lusted after. Now here was someone who saw Stiles in a different light. He couldn’t deny that it made him feel special. He just hoped that he didn’t screw it up. 

Their first date would be important. It would show Stiles if he actually compatible with Danny and visa versa. It was a nerve racking thought. In his heart of hearts, Stiles wanted things to work out; he wanted to move on beyond the pain he felt whenever he looked at Derek. Going with Danny to the Winter Formal would either prove that he was ready for a relationship that didn’t involve the Alpha or if he wasn’t. The only way to find out was for Stiles to enjoy his date to the fullest and if it didn’t work out well then there were other fishes in the sea that didn’t include Derek Fucking Hale.

It didn’t hurt that Danny was gorgeous either. As Danny reached over to hold his hand, Stiles found himself having a renewed sense of self-worth for the first time since he overheard the Alpha talking to Jackson. He just hoped that come Winter Formal that nothing would stand in their way of them moving from friendship into something new. 


	13. Chapter 13

Meanwhile, Derek was washing his car and keeping himself generally busy so that he would be tempted to look at his watch. It had only too him a couple of glances to realize he still had a couple of hours to burn until Isaac was home from school. He knew it had been wrong to ask the teen to spy on Stiles but he had to know what was going on. He had soaked his sponge for the fifth millionth time when he felt rough hands push him against the car.

Head pressed to the window, Derek eyes began to glow red. Growling, he turned around to find himself face with an equally pissed off Jackson. Frankly, the Alpha was sick and tired of these confrontations. Determined to that Jackson wouldn’t get the upper hand, Derek tackled him to the ground.

“What the fuck is your problem?”

“You are! Do you really think that I didn’t that Stiles was listening to us when I asked you that question?” The lacrosse captain asked angrily.

“Then why did you...”

“Because I was hoping that you would say that were interested in that dork. That why I could have told Danny he was wasting his time.”

“What does this have to do with him?”

“Are you that fucking blind? Danny is in love with Stiles or so he believes,” Jackson said, trying to calm himself down.

“So, it’s not like Stiles loves him,” Derek replied, his eyes going back to their normal green.

“You really are stupid aren’t you? You just think if you continue to treat him like crap that Stiles will come running. Well, you’re wrong and thanks to you, I am going to lose Danny forever.”

“I didn’t even know you were interest besides I told you the truth I am not interested in Stiles.”

“We both know that’s a lie. You better figure you shit out Derek or I will figure it out for you!”

“Just leave it alone Jackson. If Stiles is happy with Danny, fine. Just don’t screw it up.”

“I will do whatever I want and you'll thank me for it. Once I make sure that Danny is mine, Stiles will be yours for the taking,” the teen said smugly.

If I do anything it will be on my own terms,” Derek replied.

“Just make your move or else. Believe me you will thank me later,” he responded with a smirk.

Without another word, he walked away; leaving Derek alone with his thoughts. After throwing the sponge in the bucket filled with water and soap, he went to visit the place his sister was buried. Crouching down, Derek sighed. There was so many times that he wished that Laura was still around. She always gave him the best advice and now that she wasn’t there to knock some sense into him, Derek didn’t know what to do.

“Laura, there are times that I wish it had been me instead of you. I screwed so much up. The truth is I don’t know how I feel about Stiles. He needs answers, I don’t know how give. Yet, I am stupid enough to have Isaac spy on him for me. If you were hear, you would probably kick me in my ass. You would love him though; Stiles is kind of like a fungus that grows on you. He is a great guy and I certainly don’t deserve his love. I mean shouldn’t I want him to be happy? Why shouldn’t he have that with Danny?”

As he sat down, Derek knew he couldn’t let Stiles let go until he knew just exactly how he felt about the hyperactive teen. By the end of today, Derek make sure that he truly didn’t love Stiles before allowing him go to the formal with Danny. All it would take was a kiss. One kiss and if Stiles was indeed Derek’s mate then he would do everything possible to win Stiles back.


	14. Chapter 14

So as soon as Isaac came home from school, Derek cornered him. Now that he had cultivated a plan, he would need some help in order to see it come to fruition. He needed an excuse to be in the same place as Stiles. Derek knew that the teen would be avoiding him at all costs so he hoped that Isaac would be able to give him some ideas. Hopefully, his beta learned something while spying on Stiles.

"Did you find anything out?”

“Yeah, he’s going to the Winter Formal with Danny,” Isaac answer, not wanting to tell his Alpha anything more than that.

If Derek wanted to date Stiles, he would have to change his ways. There was no way in hell, Isaac was going to tell Derek about Stiles and Danny’s little date to get tuxedos. Once Jackson had stalked out of school, Isaac had figured out where he was going. He also knew the other beta had missed out on Stiles promising Danny ice cream after their trip to the Men’s Wearhouse. So thankfully, Derek didn’t know about their pre-date nor was Isaac going to say anything about it.

“You’re going with me,” Derek blurted out.

“Going where,” a confused Isaac inquired, he had absolutely no idea what his Alpha was talking about.

"You’re taking me to the Winter Formal, of course.”

“But I was planning on asking...”

“It’s too bad then that you already have a date,” Derek said interrupting him before Isaac could name his potential date. “Now let’s go to get a pair of tuxedos.”

“Fuck,” Isaac muttered as he followed Derek out of their makeshift lair.

Knowing that the Men’s Wearhouse was the only place that sold formal wear in such a small town like Beacon Hills, Isaac panicked. He had seen how Danny had looked at Stiles and Isaac honestly wanted to see both his friends happy. At first he had been Switzerland to the whole Derek/Stiles/Danny conundrum because hello, Alpha but now he was all for Stiles/Happiness. Which Isaac believed would only happen if he ended up with Danny. He had only spied on Stiles because frankly, Derek could be scary when he was obsessed over something. Now it looked like karma was not only biting him in the ass but it was screwing around with Stiles too.

There was no way in hell, however, that Isaac was going to let Derek mess up whatever was going on between Stiles and Danny. So as Derek led him into the store, he tried to steer the werewolf away from the two boys. As they chatted amicably in the corner near the vest section of the store, Isaac tried to pull Derek towards to the section where the suits and tuxedos were hanging. Unfortunately, Isaac timing had been a little off and Derek had seen the two boy before his beta could distract him with formal wear.

Isaac could stand there and watch in horror as Derek walked over to Danny and Stiles. The hyperactive teen face turned pale as Derek approached them. Nervous, he began to panic as Danny took his hand. With his calming presence, Stiles felt himself relax before facing Derek. He couldn’t help but hope that the Alpha wouldn’t make a scene. Really, however, he should have known better than to think that Derek would actually behave himself.

“Get away from him, Stiles” the Alpha ordered as growled at Danny. 

Sick and tired of Derek’s attitude, Stiles decided it was finally time to stand up for himself. 

“I’m not your bitch and I’m certainly not some puppy that will listen to your even beck and call!”

"You will listen to me!"

"No, I won't! I'm with Danny now so you can just go and fuck yourself," Stiles exclaimed angrily. 

Isaac, noticing that people were beginning to stare at them, said, "let's take this outside guys."

"Fine but we're going resolve this right here, right now," Derek responded before walking out of the store.

As the three boys followed him, Isaac knew that things were about to get ugly.


	15. Chapter 15

Once they were outside, Derek noticed that Danny was no longer holding Stiles’ hand. Taking advantage, the Alpha grabbed the teen and kissed him passionately on the lips. Shocked for only a moment, Stiles gave in. Except that everything he dreaming of for months had been a huge disappointment. Everything was wiped away by that one kiss. Instead of passion and love; all Stiles felt was awkwardness. It felt more like he had been kissing a brother rather than a lover. 

For Derek, however, it felt like coming home. He had been a fool for pushing Stiles away. Everything he ever wanted and needed was right there in his arms. Forgetting about his “regrets and blunders, he pulled back before leaning in for another kiss. Instead of Stiles taking Derek into his arms, the teen pushed him away. 

“No,” he said firmly.

“I thought this is what you wanted,” Derek replied.

“I did before you treated me like shit,” Stiles pointed out. “You can’t going around kissing me; not when you basically tore my heart to pieces.”

“I made a mistake; I’m so sorry, baby.”

“I’m sorry but...”

“I love you Stiles,” the Alpha said before kissing him again.

Unable to watch any longer, a hurt Danny walked away from the man he loved. Heart broken, he knew he couldn’t force Stiles to love him. Besides he looked happy with Derek and Danny wasn’t about ruined things for Stiles by making a scene. Walking away, he didn’t stick around to see what happened next.

Annoyed, Stiles shoved Derek away from him. He had had enough! Derek was acting like a immature, spoiled brat and Stiles wasn’t about to give into him. Using all of his strength, the teen slapped the Alpha across the face. He had quite enough of Derek; in fact he was wondering why he had fallen in love with the werewolf in the first place. 

“What part of no did you not understand?” Stiles asked in frustration.

“But darling...”

“Don’t darling me, I don’t want you; not anymore! “

“You’re my mate, I own you,” Derek growled.

“I’m not some toy that you can just take home and do whatever you want with! I am my own person and I could decide who I love or don’t love. If you think that telling me that I am your mate is going to change anything then you’re wrong!”

“You should be happy!”

“About what Derek, that you got over yourself as soon I decided to move on?”

“That someone like me actually loves someone like you!”

“What is that suppose to mean?”

“Nothing...”

“No, tell me! Stiles exclaimed angrily.

“No one in their right mind could ever love you. You know that right? I’m the only who could ever love you the way you want.”

“You’re wrong!”

“Then where’s Danny, huh. Where’s your little boyfriend? Face it Stiles you are nothing without me.”

Looking around to see that Danny was gone, Stiles shoulders slumped. He knew what had driven the other boy away; it had been the kiss. Knowing that he would have to make things up to Danny, he left in the middle of Derek’s rant. There was no way in hell that Stiles was going to let the older man make him feel like shit. While what he had with Danny wasn’t love yet; Stiles knew that it had the potential to turn into something more. It was getting easier to get over Derek, due to his instability but yet there was a stupid piece of him that wasn’t totally over the Alpha.

Stiles, however, wasn’t about to ruin things with Danny now especially when Derek was turning into a self-involved asshole. As Stiles went to go find Danny so that he could explain everything to him, Isaac tried to calm Derek down. Shaking his head, the beta sighed. There was something really wrong with the Alpha and it was time for Derek to face his demons. 

“I lost him Isaac...”

“Well, if you hadn’t acted like such a nutcase maybe just maybe Stiles would have given you a chance,” he spoke honestly.

“This is Danny’s fault!” Derek said, trying to blame somebody else for his mistakes.

“No it’s yours. Look, I really don’t know what’s wrong with you but you’re not better than Kate. Perhaps it’s time you get some help, until then I am staying with Scott.”

Walking away from his Alpha, tears fell down his cheeks. Derek had saved him from an abusive home and now it Isaac’s turn to save Derek from himself. There were so many reasons that Derek had become quick to anger and a bit of a maverick. He had so much hurt and pain over the years. First he had lost the woman he loved because of her own selfishness and lies. Then he lost his family because of her. The fire had done many things including the fact that it had scarred Derek’s psyche. It was time that the werewolf got help but right now, Isaac needed a little comfort himself. 


	16. Chapter 16

While Isaac went to Scott’s house, a lurking shadow came out it’s hide place. Smirking, Jackson couldn’t believe how easy Stilinski had made things for him. When he had followed Derek at a considerable distance he hadn’t expect to see Stiles fuck up with Danny. He didn’t even formulate a plan for getting Danny back and already things were going in Jackson’s favor. Really, after the scene that Derek and Stiles had created, he should send them a gift for making things so easy. 

Now Danny would be his for the taking. Leaving the alleyway across from the Men’s Wearhouse, Jackson called Lydia on his cell phone in order to dump her for the second time before going to Danny’s. Luckily he arrived just as in time to see Danny walking towards his house. After Jackson got out of his car, he approached the other teen. Trying to hide his glee over the whole Stiles situation, he asked, “how did your date go?”

“None of your business,” Danny replied, trying to get past his best friend so that he could just go into his house and pig out on some ice cream.

“That good, huh?” Jackson inquired, trying to hide his smile.

“Fantastic,” the goalie snarked. “If you really like to know; Derek followed us and proceed to cause a ruckus. Then he decided interrupt our date by kissing Stiles.”

“I told you that dork wasn’t good enough for you.”

“The worst part of the whole thing was that Stiles kissed him back,” Danny said, ignoring Jackson’s words. He might be upset over what happened but Danny didn’t have like the way his best friend spoke about Stiles. 

“I don’t know why you even bothered. You knew he was in love with Derek and you still went after him. This is your own damn fault,” Jackson pointed out, feeling a bit annoyed.

“Fuck you Jackson! At least I took a chance!”

“You did, on a loser who doesn’t even deserve you!! Stiles is nothing; he’s the dirt beneath your shoe. You can have your pick of any guy and you chose him. Well, guess what Danny, he doesn’t want you!”

“Yes, I’m firmly aware that now; thank you for point out the obvious,” he said, trying to hold in his tears. There was no way in hell he was about to cry in front of Jackson. Especially since he was acting like such an asshole. “No, if you’ll excuse me...”

“Wait, we’re not done talking,” Jackson replied, blocking Danny from going into his house. 

“Yes, we are; now leave.”

“Not until we discuss the Winter Formal,” Jackson growled.

What about it?” An angry Danny asked.

“Now that the loser is with Derek; you need a date right?”

“I’m not going,” he replied, trying to push his way past Jackson.

“Yes, you are; with me.”

“Um no, I’m not. Besides aren’t you taking Lydia?”

“We’re not longer together which means we can go to the dance together,” Jackson said smugly.

“Don’t do this to me Jackson; not now!”

“Look, I made a mistake...”

“You dumped me for Lydia. You kept me your dirty little secret for two fucking years! It took me eight months to even be your friend again. You can stay in your little closet Jackson because it’s never going to happen. Not again.”

“Why not; you know that we are good together, that I can fuck you like nobody else could. I promised this time that we...”

“It’s too late, Jackson. I don’t love you anymore; that boat sailed a long time ago.”

“You rather go with dork boy is that it?”

“Yes, in fact I would rather have sex with a Chimera then go out on a date with you! Now get out of my sight.”

Annoyed, Danny finally pushed past Jackson before going into his house. Leaving the spoiled behind, he locked the door behind him. Disgusted, Danny didn’t want to have anything to do with Jackson anymore. Their confrontation had been the final straw and right now he was so over the whole situation. Between Stiles, Derek, and Jackson, Danny just wanted to hide his head underneath his pillow and forget all about the Winter Formal.

As he went up to his room, Jackson lingered for a moment prior to hopping into his car. Taking one last look at Danny’s house, he vowed that he would make his ex-best friend pay for the way he had humiliated him.

Meanwhile, across town a tired Isaac went up to Scott’s room. Opening the door, Isaac noticed the other boy staring at a picture of him and Allison. He sat down on a chair and was about to ask Scott if he was alright when the he looked sadly at Isaac. He and Stiles were the only ones that noticed Allison’s distance lately. Two weeks ago the couple was attached at the hip, now Allison was ignoring him again.

“Allison decided she didn’t want to the Winter Formal with me,” Scott said, startling Isaac out of his thoughts. “She’s going with some guy she met in English class.

“Why didn’t you tell us?”

“Stiles has been understandably occupied and I didn’t want to cause anymore drama.”

“Still, you could have told us. Did she tell you why?”

“No, she just said that we were drifting apart,” Scott replied.

“So you are telling me she dumped you, even though she had her tongue down your throat two weeks ago?”

“Pretty much.”

“I’m so sorry Scott,” Isaac said.

“It’s not your fault it’s mine...”

Although he was sad that Scott was hurting, Isaac decided to cease the moment. He always knew the other werewolf was in love with Allison but Isaac had to know. Beside Scott deserves someone who cares about him no matter what. Allison didn’t seem to know her own mind and was constantly playing with Scott’s heart. Isaac believed that she didn’t mean to hurt Scott but she was always changing her mind. 

It was like she couldn’t truly accept that Scott was a werewolf especially after her mother’s death. Isaac, however, saw the other boy for who he truly was. Yes, Scott was a werewolf but so was he. Beyond that Scott could be a little dopey but he was also very sweet. Scott cared about his friends and was extremely protective of them; even though he got a distracted at times. He merits someone who truly loved him and Isaac wanted to be that person.

“Would you like to go to the dance with me?” He asked shyly.

Ducking his head, a blush covered his cheeks as Isaac nervously waited for Scott’s answer. As he sat there utterly adorable and vulnerable, Scott couldn’t help but smile. He liked Isaac and couldn’t find it in his heart to say no.

“I would love to; as friends,” Scott answered. “I’m not quite over Allison yet and I don’t want to hurt you by rushing into things.”

“I understand,” Isaac said with a smile.

“Come here,” he replied, patting his bed.

After he joined Scott, he took Isaac in his arms and began to cuddle with him. As they took comfort in each other, they couldn’t help but wonder if things would ever work out in Stiles’ favor. 


	17. Chapter 17

Stiles knew how things looked. Hell, if he was Danny he would have walked away too. He realized that he had screwed up. Yes, it had been Derek that initiated their kiss but it wasn’t likes Stiles stopped it. No, he had given in; wanting to know what kissing Derek Hale would be like. Instead of it being everything he had dreamed of, it had been disappointing. The worst part of the situation was that, Stiles wasn’t even sure if Danny wanted to with to the Winter Formal anymore.

His first real date and he had already ruined things. Hopping into his Jeep, Stiles drove to Danny’s house. His instincts was telling him to turn around go home but his heart wanted to fix things with the other boy. Stiles, however, didn’t even know if Danny wanted to hear him out. Wondering if he should even take the chance, Stiles hesitated in his Jeep for a moment after parking in front of Danny’s house. Deciding that he should face the situation head on, Stiles was about to get out of his car when his phone began to vibrate.

Pulling out his iPhone, he swiped his finger across the screen to see that he had received a text message from Danny. Going to his messages app, Stiles saw the words, “stay away from me,” typed in all caps. Upset, he put his phone away and looked towards Danny’s house. Seeing the other boy look down at him from his bedroom window, Stiles sighed. There would be no getting through to Danny today. Hopefully tomorrow, he would be more receptive towards hearing what Stiles had to say. For now all he could do was go to his house and try to drown his sorrows in a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos.

Coming home after his father, he opened the door to find John sitting in the living room reading a file. Not wanting to bother him, Stiles was about to creep passed his dad when he looked up from his work. Noticing the sad look on his son’s face, he beckoned for Stiles to join him.

“How was school?” John asked as he sat down.

“Fine, I was asked to the Winter Formal.”

“Somehow, I think you’re not telling me the entire story. So why is your face to your ground instead of being happy?”

“You know that guy...”

“Yeah, the jerk who doesn’t know his ass from his elbow let alone how awesome you are,” John replied interrupting him.

“Yeah, well he kind of kissed me when I was out with Danny.”

“And,” the Sheriff prompted.

“And Danny was the one who asked me to the dance.”

“I see, are you still in love with the asshole or do you have feeling for Danny. Did you just saying yes because Danny is your friend?

“I don’t know. I feel like such an idiot because there is still a part of me that still wants to be with he who shall not be names. Yet there is another piece that wants to see where things go with Danny. I can’t understand why I can get over that jerk. He’s treated me like dirt and I keep coming back for me. Plus, he’s not even a good kisser.”

“This isn’t something you can figure out in a couple of days Stiles. You knew to think things over before you hurt Danny even more.”

“Too late,” Stiles muttered sadly. “He won’t even talk to me.”

“Give him time, son, he’ll come around,” he replied, trying to comfort Stiles.

“Thanks, dad,” he said as he gave his father a hug.

He might not have any answers to the Danny/Derek conundrum but at least he knew his father would always be there for him. After pulling away from the hug, Stiles went into the kitchen to make dinner. As he took some ingredients from the refrigerator, he wondered if he would ever get his act straight. Although he knew logically that two days wasn’t enough to get over your first love, Stiles wished he could forget all about Derek. 

The Alpha had brought him nothing but heartache and pain. Over the course of a month, he had hurt Stiles in the worse ways. He knew that a part of Derek’s problems where ingrained from his past. Still that was no excuse for his bullying nature. Derek was like a toddler who stamped his feet until he got what he wanted. These were attributes that should have caused Stiles to run as far away from Derek as he could. Yet, he kept on being drawn to Derek like a moth to flame.

Sometimes, moths got burned and Stiles had to remember that. He was playing a dangerous game. If he decided to date Derek in his current condition, how long would it be before Stiles did something that the Alpha didn’t like? How long until take for Derek to go ballistic and hit Stiles out of anger? Then there was Danny who had been nothing but sweet to him.

Sighing, Stiles knew he had a lot to think about in the upcoming days. Plus there was an amends he had to make. Danny deserved nothing less.

An introspective Derek stood in front of the clothing store before heading to Dr. Deaton’s office. In his heart he knew that Isaac was right, he needed help. He was ashamed of how he acted; things needed to change. Knowing the Dr. Deaton was wealth of knowledge when it came to the supernatural, Derek drove to the Beacon Hills Animal Clinic. If anyone knew of a therapist that was in the know about werewolves it would be him. His problems would never be fixed overnight but perhaps eventually he would become a man who would be worthy of Stiles’ love.

Jackson, on the other hand, wasn’t so remorseful. Not caring how much he had hurt Lydia and Danny, he still wanted revenge. There was no way in hell, he was going to let Danny treat him like that and get away with it. Why couldn’t he understand that Jackson had made a mistake? Shouldn’t Danny just forgive and take him back? After all, there was no way in hell that the other boy would ever get anyone as handsome and powerful as Jackson to be his boyfriend. Danny should be grateful that Jackson had chosen him to be his mate over everybody else. He literally had over a dozen girls and boys just dying to date him. So really he was doing Danny a favor.

Two years ago, he wasn’t as popular. At that point he was only on the junior varsity lacrosse team and the lowest boy on the totem pole. Sure, he tried to climb his way up from the muck and mire of being invisible to the higher echelon of popularity. Jackson, however, was unlikable. They wanted nothing to do with the egotistical teen. Danny had been his only friend during that time. He didn’t care that Jackson was an asshole or that he care only about himself. He tried to bring the good out in Jackson.

They were inseparable and it was only a matter of time until their friendship turned into something more. Jackson had Danny’s first kiss and first time. It was the time in his life that Jackson felt true love and no just pity because his parents died. He had been happy for a while; basking in Danny’s love and affection. Then they left junior high school and started high school. Suddenly, things changed when Coach Finstock made his captain of the lacrosse team. Everyone wanted to be him or date him. It was then that Lydia came into the picture.

The most popular girl in school, she was his ticket to ruling the school. Still seeing Danny, he began dating Lydia behind the other boy’s. Juggling his schedule so the two didn’t know about each other, Jackson continued to use them for his own purposes; Lydia for her popularity and Danny for the sex. That was until he asked Jackson to come out of the closet and date him publicly. Realizing that if he did that Lydia and Danny would find out about everything. So forgetting all about and choosing popularity instead, Jackson dumped Danny but not before one last night in his boyfriend’s bed.

After that, it had taken lots of begging and some time for Danny to even be his best friend again. Still, Jackson knew there was still a part of the other boy that still didn’t trust him. It was until Danny told him about his little crush on Stiles that Jackson realized what he had truly lost that day he broke up with Danny. He wasn’t about to let go of the other boy, especially not when he was the only one who truly loved Jackson.

Danny would learn that no one crossed Jackson Whittemore and didn’t pay the consequences. It however wouldn’t be Danny who would pay the price. He would make Stiles suffer!

Staring at his phone Danny began to wish he hadn’t sent that text message. Although he had been hurt by the kiss, he should have heard Stiles out. After all it wasn’t like they were dating. Maybe he had been too hard on Stiles. Revolved to talk to the other boy tomorrow, Danny joined his family downstairs for dinner.

Dr. Deaton was about to lock the clinic for the night when Derek entered through the front door. Noticing that the Alpha looked a bit uncomfortable, beckoning for Derek to follow him. Once they were in Dr. Deaton’s office, the veterinarian motioned for Derek to sit.

“What can I do you for Mr. Hale?” He asked, as he settled down at his desk.

“I, I need your help,” Derek answered, wondering how he was suppose to ask for the doctor’s assistance.

“Is it about the Alphas?”

“No, it’s about me. I haven’t really dealt with my family’s death nor with what happened with Katie and it’s affecting my life. I could use someone to talk to who knows about the supernatural.”

“I know of someone,” Dr. Deaton said, opening the middle door of his desk. Reaching inside, he pulled out a business car and handed it over to Derek.

“Ms. Kendra Morrell,” he read, wondering if this woman could truly help him. 

“Are you sure...”

“Trust me Derek, Ms. Morrell will be discreet. She is someone you can trust,” Dr. Deaton interrupted.

Looking down at the card, Derek wondered if he could truly let someone in. His past wasn’t pretty and he had a lot of regrets. Could someone really help him; as messed up as he was? Sure, there was the need to talk about the fire, Kate and Stiles but Derek was still hesitant. In order to move on, however, he had to deal with his faults, flaws, and attitude. Was going to a therapist worth the trouble for Derek; especially it didn’t mean he would win over Stiles?

“You have to be serious about this,” the veterinary said in a way that made the werewolf believe that the older man had read his mind.

He had a decision to make and it wouldn’t be easy. Did he want this for himself or Stiles? Derek needed to answer that question before he even attempted to see Ms. Morrell. He had to want to get better. This had nothing to do with Stiles. If he decided to seek help from a therapist it had to be on his own terms; not because of some self-deluded attempt at trying to get Stiles to love him again. 

“Whether you seek her help is up to you. In the end it should be your choice and no one else’s,” Dr. Deaton spoke, confirming Derek’s thoughts.

“Thank you,” Derek replied before getting up.

Without another word the Alpha left the Clinic. Business card in hand, he went to the burnt out Hale house to think. As he looked around at the place that once had been his home, Derek remembered the happiness he had once felt there. He could still hear his mother’s laughter as they put up the Christmas tree. It was memory of the smile on sister’s face during her last visit to New York City, however, that finally brought a moment of clarity for Derek. He remembered the feeling of contentment and wanted to feel that again. Perhaps, with time, he could be happy once again. Taking out his phone, he began to dial Ms. Morrell’s number.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A.N. Since Ms. Morrell doesn't have a first name as of yet, I gave her the name of Kendra. If anyone knows their Buffy history they will know that Bianca Lawson is the same actress who played Kendra :)

“Hello,” a voice replied on the other end.

“Ms. Kendra Morrell...”

“This is she,” the therapist answered politely.

“I would like to make an appointment.

“But I’m on a guidance counselor,” she said, the confusion evident in her voice.

“Dr. Deaton recommended you.”

“I see; is tomorrow good for you Mr. Hale.”

“How did you....”

“If tomorrow isn’t good for you there’s always Wednesday,” she offered, interrupting Derek’s question.

“Tomorrow is fine.”

“I will see you then.”

Ending the phone call, Derek wondered how Ms. Morrell knew who he was. After all, he hadn’t introduced himself to her. Staring at the phone for awhile Derek, knew it didn’t matter how she knew, as long as she was willing to help him.

That night as Stiles tried to sleep, John went to check on him. Seeing his son tossing and turning, he sighed. The Sheriff had to do right by Stiles but he often wondered if he was doing things right. Although he was a good kid, John was sure that there was something a mother would be better at; liking dating advice. With his wife gone for ten years, John was pretty sure; he was mucking it up somehow. After all, he had just started dating someone after ten years of being widower. What did he know about situations like kissing another guy in front a boy you might possibly like? He really didn’t know anything about that; his wife had been high school sweethearts and although they had their share of drama, it seemed so petty compared to what Stiles was dealing with.

Remembering a number in his pocket, John looked at Stiles one last time before going to his bedroom. Once inside, he took out the tiny slip of paper and began to dial the number on it.

“Hello?”

“Can we talk?” He asked the only person who would understand what he was going through.

“Of course.”

“I need some advice on messy relationships.”

“You came to the right person,” Chris Argent chuckled on the other end of the line.

Normally, John would have gone to Melissa McCall but he needed to hear things from another single father’s point of view. When Victoria died, he and Chris had exchanged numbers. John figured the other man needed someone to talk to. After being a widower, himself, the Sheriff knew that Chris could use a person to vent to when things got too hard. He never expected for the other man to return the favor.

As the Sheriff told him the entire situation, Chris listened. Although John knew nothing about the supernatural, werewolves, or what his son was keeping from him, Chris had his own reasons for giving the other man his cell phone number. It started off as a way to gather information. After his father, Gerard Argent’s disappearance, he wanted to make sure that the teenagers were safe from harm. 

Chris might have a distaste for hunting after learning of his father and sister’s crimes against innocent werewolves but that didn’t mean he wasn’t watching. So he tried to gather was little information he could from John; which was next to nothing. There were times that he knew of Stiles’ whereabouts, causing Chris to breathe a sigh of relief that his daughter and her friends were okay.


	19. Chapter 19

Lately, however, Allison had been distancing herself from him, Scott, and Stiles. Ever since Chris stopped hunting, she has been acting strange. It was like Gerard was back pulling her strings; making her the next Kate. He, however, believed that after his father had almost killed Allison that she wouldn’t trust the old coote anymore. Then he saw something odd today when he had been driving around town doing some errands. He had seen Allison sitting in passenger seat of Jackson Whittemore’s car. Chris could see her whispering in his ear. It had made him suspicious of his daughter’s activities. Which was another reason he was glad for John’s call, he was able to learn things from the Sheriff that Allison would never tell him.

What had started off as way to gather anything he could on his reluctant allies had turned into something else. Chris had actually found himself liking the Sheriff more than he should. Sighing, his thoughts turned back to Allison as John continued to talk about the situation with Stiles. Thinking of locked doors, adverted hugs, and the pinched look on his daughter’s face; Chris thought that perhaps John wasn’t the only one who needed advice.

“I just don’t know what to tell him anymore,” the Sheriff said, bringing Chris’ attention back to the conversation they were having.

“Do you know who this other guy is?” Chris asked, hoping Stiles was stuck on Derek Hale or worse Jackson Whittemore.

“No, he won’t tell me. A part of me hopes he chooses Danny but it’s not my decision; it’s his.”

“You have to let him make his own mistakes John.”

“I hate seeing him so hurt, Chris. He’s a good kid with a big heart; he doesn’t deserve these kinds of problems. This guy who he likes has Stiles tied up in all knots and he making my son doubt himself. I can’t lose him.”

“You won’t,” Chris replied, trying to comfort the other man. “Stiles is a strong kid...”

“I know. God, he’s so much like his mother. Her dying almost destroyed me; if anything happened to him...”

“I feel the same way about Allison.”

“Any luck,” John asked, changing the subject away from Stiles and how much it hurt to see his child dealing with so much pain.

“No, she’s pulling away from me and I wish I knew why.”

“Maybe could show her that you're always there for her,” John offered.

“How?”

“You could start with the Winter Formal; it’s in a couple of weeks and the school is looking for chaperones.”

Thinking it over, Chris smiled. John had come up with a great idea. Not only could he keep an eye on Scott, Stiles, and possibly Isaac but he could find out what the hell was going on between his daughter and Jackson. He might have not been happy with her dating Scott but anyone was better than that asshole. He had heard what he done to Lydia and Chris wasn’t happy that his baby girl was possibly hooking up someone as dangerously and psychopathic like Jackson Whittemore.

“I’ll take it into consideration.”

“I’m thinking of volunteering myself; just encase Stiles decides to be Mr. Mysterious’ date.”

As the two gentlemen continued to talk, a sleeping Stiles dreamt. Wearing his favor red hoodie, he stood in the middle of the woods. On one side there was rabid dog waiting to bite him at any moment; on his left was Danny. Near him the clearing was filled with flowers and the Hawaiian beckoned Stiles to him. Where the dog was, there was death. At the edge of a precipice Dream Stiles began to walk towards the rapid dog; leaving Danny behind him. As he neared the animal, it lunged at him; its teeth snapping at him before Stiles woke up in a sweat.

Looking at his clock, the red blinking twelve o’clock mocked him. He tried laying down again but sleep evaded him. He tossed his blanket aside as Stiles went over to his computer. Sitting down, he pulled up his word program and began to type. Stiles’ thoughts, dreams, plans and hopes for the future began to fill the once empty page. When he was done he noticed one name was repeated more than the other. Starting at it, Stiles wondered if his heart had made the final decision between Derek and Danny for him. All Stiles knew was that the page before him he had written who exactly he saw by his side in times of joy and sorrow.

Starting tomorrow Stiles would take the bull by the horns. No more pussy footing around; tomorrow he would man up and finally make his choice. Stiles could hope the other man in the equation would understand. He had to follow his heart even if that meant hurting someone in the end.


	20. Chapter 20

When the sun met the horizon; lighting up the sky in pinks and oranges, Danny’s alarm clock began to beep loudly. Comfortable in bed, the teen reached over and smacked the snooze button a couple of times. Knowing he had time to do his morning routine and still get to school on him, Danny tried to go back to sleep. A few moments later, however, the alarm went off again, reminding him that he had the face the day. Which was the last thing Danny wanted to do. There was Stiles, the Winter Formal and Jackson to deal with. Although he wouldn’t mind avoid all the the things especially the asshole he once called his best friend.

Contrary to what people believed, he was over the egotistical son of a bitch. Sure when Danny was thirteen, Jackson was his entire life. He was so wrapped up in the other boy that he didn’t realize that he was just Jackson’s play thing. Danny had honestly thought that he was in love and loved back. He could have been more wrong. Only looking back at now, did Danny realized how abusive their relationship had been. Not physical but much like Derek; Jackson was possessive one moment and hurtful with well placed comments the next.

It had taken Danny a year of therapy to realize just how toxic being with Jackson was. He had been pretty screwed up during that time; wishing death over being parted with the boyfriend that treated him like crap. Slowly and surely Danny healed but not without the relationship leaving it’s scars on Danny’s heart. The harsh lessons he learned during his time with Jackson was one reasons he had been so reluctant about telling Stiles how he felt. It was also the reason he was worried about the likes of Derek Hale. He understood the kind of pain and sorrow that the older man could potentially put Stiles though.

He had been there and Danny didn’t wish that kind of horror on anyway. Sighing, he got out of bed; determined to talk to Stiles at school.

When Stiles got to school thirty minutes before his first class started, he noticed Derek’s Camaro in the parking lot. Curious, he hopped out of his Jeep and entered the school. Snooping around the hallways, he had been walking past guidance counselor's office when he heard Derek’s voice. Eavesdropping, Stiles heard his name and mate in the same sentence. In the moment his heart began to pound.

Deciding to wait, he stood outside Ms. Morrell’s office until Derek finally came out. With only ten minutes before class to talk, Stiles knew he had to take his chance now; until it was too late. He had to make his stand now. Grabbing the Alpha’s shirt, Stiles kissed Derek on the lips. There was nothing; no spark, no passion, or even fireworks. What he had felt the day before hadn’t been some fluke; the name written over and over on the word document hadn’t been his future but just a fantasy. He had chosen and lost everything.

Stiles had planned his entire life around Derek but the person he saw in his dreams didn’t add up to the man he saw in front of him. In the moment, Stiles had totally clarity, Derek wasn’t who he was supposed to be with and for the first since that day in the pool, Stiles finally knew the truth. Just Lydia, Derek was someone he had built up on a pedestal. Unreachable and unattainable; he deemed the Alpha perfect; someone he was unworthy of. But when in reality it was Derek who was unworthy of him. 

Finally, Stiles could move on. The kiss had only lasted a moment but it told Stiles everything he needed to know. Quickly, pulling away, he looked at Derek and said, “I’m sorry but I’m not love...”

“You’re not the one who should be apologizing. The truth is that I could never return half the love you had for me; not the way I am now;” he replied, interrupting Stiles’ admission. “Someday, I hope to be the man you saw that day at the pool; the one worthy of your trust.”

“You will be,” the teen spoke with conviction. 

“Thank you, Stiles, for everything,” Derek said before walking away.

As he disappeared around the corner, Stiles felt like it was closing of one door and an opening to another. With the ring of the bell, he made his way to Chemistry to where Danny would be waiting for class to begin. After quickly rushing down the hallways, he slipped in the seat next to Danny.


	21. Chapter 21

“We need to talk.”

“I know,” he answered.

Any attempt at talking were put to an to an end when Mr. Harris walked through the door. Tension filled the air as both boys tried to not worry about their impending conversation. Things needed be hashed out between the two of them before things festered and got worse. Danny just hoped that Stiles would say the one thing he wanted to hear; that he still had a date to the dance.

Class continued at someone watched the pair from the corner of the room. Soon they would have their revenge. All the pain, grief, and loss; it had been his fault. If they had never found that body; if Stiles never dragged Scott into the woods that day none of this would have happened. There were three people that Allison believed were responsible for her mother’s death and her grandfather’s disappearance. Derek, Scott and Stiles would pay for their crimes and Jackson, idiot that he was, was going to help her. Winter Formal was going to be a night that Allison would make sure that Stiles, Derek, and Scott never forgot. It was night she hoped they wouldn't survive. First, however, she had to make sure that Alpha would be there at the dance and she had just the person he could go with. Thankfully, she had Jackson to make sure that Lydia would be compliant with her request.

Sometimes, however, plans don’t work quite work out the way a person might want it to. Although to fair, Allison didn’t wait for Jackson before approaching Lydia. If she had, perhaps the outcome would have been different. She only had patient to wait until the first class was over and everyone was at their lockers getting their books for second period. Lydia had only been at her locket for a second before a wild eyed Allison walked up to her. She was dialing her combination number when the huntress sweetly asked, “can we talk?”

“Sure,” she answered. “Walk with me; I don’t want to be late to class.”

“I was wondering if you had a date for the dance?” Allison inquired, acting like she didn’t know that Jackson had dumped so that he could go with Danny.


	22. Chapter 22

“Not yet, I am narrowing down my choice now that jackass Jackson has decided to break up for no reason; again.”

“I might have a guy for you...”

“No... just no!” Lydia replied walking away from Allison. 

As she entered her AP Math class, Lydia couldn’t help but wonder why her ex-boyfriend and best friend had been acting so fishy lately. She wondered if they were having an affair behind her back or if there was something else going on. Whatever it was, Lydia didn’t trust either one of them. She was definitely going to keep an eye on them.

Left behind in the hallway, Allison couldn’t believe that all her planning was about to come undone. If she was going to make everyone pay, Allison would have to reconsider her tactics. While she went to find Jackson, Stiles went to find Danny. Having only study hall for their next period, he would be able to talk to Danny without getting in trouble with the likes of Adrian Harris, who hated his guts.

“Look about yesterday...”

“Forget it; I get it you’re in love with Derek.”

“Truth is, I thought it was. When I kissed him yesterday and today, there was nothing there. I really didn’t mean to hurt you but I had to know; I couldn’t move on until I did. Have you ever built someone inside your head only to be disappointed?”

“Yesterday, I was jealous and I acted like a jerk. And to answer your question, Yes, I did...Jackson...:

“You had every right to be angry. I kiss another guy on our first date and I should be the one apologizing for being such an ass. Wait a minute...you guys dated?” A surprised Stile asked.

"You’re forgiven and yes for two years I went out with him until he dumped me for popularity and Lydia. I thought “he was so wonderful, that he could do no wrong. In reality, he was using me. I built this whole life around him and Jackson; he just didn’t care. So yes, I know how it feels. Okay, just so we’re clear, there is no you and Derek?”

“No, there isn’t. I do hope that Derek and I can be friend eventually but I’m not in love with him. I realized that he was just a dream.” Stiles admitted.

“And us?”


	23. Chapter 23

“To be honest, Danny I want to take things slow and see where it leads. So what do you say do I still have a date to the dance?”

“Of course,” he said, taking Stiles’ hand in his.

Stiles knew things weren’t perfect and things with Danny might not work out but for now, he was truly happy. 

Unfortunately, he didn’t know of the plans that Allison and Jackson were setting in motion to take that happiness away. If he had, perhaps things would have been different. So while Stiles sat in study hall talking to Danny and patching up thing with him, Allison was on a mission to find Jackson. The boy in question had cut his first period class to get a come of things he would need for the Winter Formal. 

He had come back to school with a forged note with a excuse of a migraine for the nurse from his parents and was on his way to gym class when he sat her. Noticing the look on Allison’s face he knew she had screwed up. Frustrated that the girl couldn’t follow the simplest instructions, Jackson growled as he approached the huntress. 

“You talked to Lydia didn’t you?” He asked, angrily.

“Yes,” she replied apologetically.

“What did I say to you? Did I not tell you to leave thing to me? Now how are we supposed to get Derek to the dance? It’s clear to me that not truly invested in getting your revenge. Do you not care that Derek essentially killed you mother? Does it even matter to you that your ex-boyfriend is a monster that destroyed half your family? Or perhaps you don’t give a fuck that Stiles is the reason that the man you fell in love with became a werewolf?”

“That’s not true, you know I want them dead just like you!” Allison exclaimed, tears streaming down her cheeks as she began to cry.

“Then start acting like it and get Derek to that dance!”

“How, Lydia is not going to want to go with him,” she replied. “Plus I don’t think she trusts us.”

“Whose fault is that? Looks like I am going to fix your messes. Now go to class and let me take care of things.”

Disgusted, Jackson turned away from Allison and went into the locker room. As he changed into his gym clothes, he was unaware of Scott and Isaac on the other side of the room. In his anger and frustration with Allison, Jackson had forgotten that the two betas were in the same class as him. They had heard every word that was said between him and Allison; spoiling the element of surprise. As they watched him disappear into the gymnasium, they knew they had do something or people would get hurt. Scott, taking Isaac’s hand, walked out of the locker room. With no one in the hallway, he led the other boy to the parking lot; they needed to come up with a plan of their own. Thankfully, Scott’s mother had let him borrow the car that week.

Without another thought of classes, the two teens went to find Derek at his makeshift lair. Thankfully, he had gone there after his session with Ms. Morrell and his talk with Stiles. Moody, Derek thought of what the therapist had told him of trying to put the past behind him. He knew it would be difficult but he was determined to become a better man, Alpha and friend. Derek wanted to prove that Stiles’ faith in him wasn’t misplaced. With each thought of Kate, the fire, and his sister’s death, Derek took out his pain on the punching bag in front of him. 

He was trying to let of the hurt with each punch when Isaac and Scott walked into the lair. Seeing matching looks of anger on their faces, Derek stopped what he was doing. As he turned away from the punching bag, he asked, “what’s wrong; did something happen?”

“It’s Jackson and Allison; apparently the two have been scheming together....” Scott said, wondering how the girl he once loved turned into such a monster.

“And,” Derek replied wanting to know what they were up to and how he could stop it.

“They want to kill us and Stiles,” Scott admitted; vexed that Allison was apart of this insidious plan.

Isaac, seeing the sad look on Scott’s face, took him in his arms and began to comfort the other boy. He hated seeing Scott like this because of something Allison did. Isaac knew how much Scott loved her and it upset him that she could be so callous to forget what they had shared. It was like the nice, sweet girl they had all once been friend with had disappeared and was replaced with someone they didn’t even recognized. She had now become the enemy.

Placing a soft, tender, brief kiss on Scott’s lips in order to calm him down, Isaac sighed. He knew it would take awhile for the other boy to get over Allison and he would be there for Scott every step of the way.

“I won’t let that happen,” Derek growled, startling Isaac out of his thoughts. “If they so much touch Stiles or you, I will rip them apart.”

“We need a plan and a way to get to the Winter Formal,” Isaac said. “Whatever they have planned, it’s going to take place then.”

“Lydia, did you think she’ll help us?” Derek asked

“I don’t think she would aid us without know why,” Scott answered. “Perhaps, if we explain things to her, she would be more willing…”


	24. Chapter 24

“Call her; we need all the assistance we can get.”

Taking out his phone Scott began to dialing her number. As it rang, he hoped that she would be willing to take apart in their plan. After all she was essential to keeping Stiles, him and Derek in one piece. Lydia was still in her class when phone began to loudly play her favorite song. Embarrassed, she sunk down in her seat as she put it on vibrate. Whatever it was; it could wait until class was over. She continued to ignore the call until something inside of her told her to answer. Raising her hand, Lydia asked her teacher if she could go to the bathroom.

With a nod of the head, Lydia was out the door with a pass. Slipping into a girl’s bathroom nearest to her Math class, she made sure no one else was inside before answering the call. 

“Hello?” She answered wearily.

“Lydia, its Scott we need your help. Can you meet us outside in an hour?” 

As her finger hovered over the delete button, Lydia was tempted to just ignore Scott’s text message. Frankly, she was tired of the werewolf shit. All Lydia wanted was her normal life back, the one where she was still Jackson’s girlfriend. Now he just ignored her as she dealt with the aftermath of Peter playing with her mind. Yet there was another part of her that wanted to know why Jackson and Allison were acting so weird. 

“Fuck it,” she said, typing in her answer. She had questions that needed to be answered.

Throwing her phone back in her purse, Lydia went back to class. Thankfully, her next period was a free one. With a 4.0 grade point average and early acceptances to Yale, Harvard and MIT, she didn’t need the werewolf situation to ruin her future. Still as she sat down at her desk, doubts still lingered in her mind. Was she doing the right thing? She might still care about Jackson but was this really her business. Lydia had everything going for her; did she really need to jeopardize it all to for the likes of Derek Hale and his uncle? Did she have any other choice? If they really need her to talk to her so badly than it had to be for something important; something that could save lives. Glad that she decided to say yes, Lydia began to pay attention to class once again.

“What did she say?” an anxious Derek asked.

“She said yes,” Scott replied, breathing a sigh of relief.

Lydia was essential to their plan, without her thing might turn ugly. They needed all the assistance they could get. After all they needed to act without getting anyone hurt. Hopefully, Allison didn’t recruit her father to help them out. Where Ever happened the students of Beacon Hills High School came first. They were innocents who they had to get out of them gym before anything that Allison and Jackson had planned got too violent. Which is was why they needed Derek there to aid them.

Perhaps, once they told Lydia of their plan, they could convince Stiles to finally tell his father about the fact that werewolves were real and living amongst the normal citizens of Beacon Hills. With John there perhaps, the situation could be dealt with in a more peaceful, lawful way. Whatever they decided, Scott knew that Winter Formal could become a matter of life and death for his friends.

Worried, Scott waited for Lydia outside in the parking lot. He began feeling a bit jittery when Isaac grabbed his hand and held it. Within seconds, he felt the wolf inside him start to calm down. It was something Scott never experienced before with Allison. He always thought that she was the one; that they were soul mates. She, however, had proved Scott wrong time and times again. Allison believed that she could deal with him being a werewolf but everything she stood for and did proved otherwise. With Isaac it was different; it felt easier.

For some reason, unlike his ex-girlfriend, Isaac was always source of tranquility for Scott. He didn’t doubt Isaac’s motives; he just knew the other beta would be there for him no matter what. Scott couldn’t help but wonder, if that was what it felt like to find one’s mate. If so, he couldn’t see himself letting go of Isaac any time soon not even for someone like Allison. Taking comfort in Isaac, Scott waited until finally Lydia joined their little group.

“What do you guys need me for?” She asked nervously.

“We need you to take Derek to the Winter Formal,” Scott answered without giving any further information.

Tell me why and I’ll think about it.,”

“All you need to know is that it’s matter of great importance,” Derek replied.

“The truth or I am going to leave...”

“Allison and Jackson are planning on killing me, Derek and Stiles,” Scott revealed, looking Lydia directly in the eyes.

Seeing the truth in brown eyes, Lydia felt a deep sadness come over her. While she loved Jackson, she cared for Stiles and Scott. The two boys had been there for her when others hadn’t been, especially Stiles, who she had ignored since the third grade. Sure, he might have had an annoying crush on her but he was the one who helped her through the Peter situation. If it hadn’t been for Stiles, she would probably be locked up in a psych ward right now. The situation was reversed and Stiles needed her help. Lydia wasn’t about to let him down.


	25. Chapter 25

“Fine, will you Derek Hale be my date for the Winter Formal,” she said, pretending that she didn’t care.

“I would be delight,” he replied sarcastically.

“Good, I expect you to be on time... and there better be a limo,” she announced before walking away from them.

As she disappeared back into the school, Isaac, Derek, and Scott knew there were a least three more people they needed to talk to. They just hoped that Stiles understood why they had to tell the Sheriff the truth. Going to John would have to wait, however, until school was over and he was off duty. 

So Isaac and Scott went back to class as Derek decided to skulk around to see whatever he could find out. Perhaps it was time to visit Chris to see if he knew anything about his daughter’s activities. While he went to see what the hunter was up to, Scott and Isaac made it to English class while the teacher was rambling about the beauty of Shakespeare. Sliding into his seat next to Stiles, Scott saw a perplexed look on his best friend’s face. Knowing that Ms. Jensen was blind as a bat, the werewolf took out his pen and began to jot something down. When he was done, he passed the note to Stiles.

Opening it, he read the words, “We need to talk after lunch.” 

“Why?” Stiles wrote before tossing the small piece paper at Scott.

“Can’t go into now... later... bring Danny,” he answered.

Realizing he wasn’t going to get any further information, Stiles eyes back to the front of the room. It didn’t, however, stop the furious beating of his heart. Just when he had found e equal ground when it came to Danny, it looked like there was going to werewolf trouble on the horizon. Was it too much ask to get through the day or week without things going to shit? Winter Formal was approaching quickly and Stiles wanted to spend that time with Danny. He wanted to see if things could truly work between the two of them. Now it looked like he was going to be thrown to the wolf; quite literally. 

While a nervous Stiles began to sweat a little, Lydia was still walking to her class which was on the other side of the building. She was almost there when someone grabbed her by the arm. Unable to pull away, Lydia was dragged into an abandoned janitor closet. Once the door was closed and locked, she was whirled around only to find an angry Jackson looking at her.

“I’ll not be humiliated by you,” he exclaimed, practically spitting at her.

“What the hell are you talking about?” She asked, wondering what was going through Jackson’s mind.

After Jackson’s transformation from Kanima into a werewolf, things between them had been getting better. He had been attentive and sweet but that had only last a few months. Lately, they had gone back to the soul crushes days where Lydia could barely see the boy she had fallen in love with. Jackson had done another complete one eighty and Lydia had no idea of what had flipped her ex-boyfriend switch. One day he was the model boyfriend and the next he was spewing ugly words while he broke up with her again (it had been the fifth time he had done so that month). This time, however, it was more permanent because there was no way she wasn’t taking back again.


	26. Chapter 26

“You don’t think I know what you’re doing; we’ll I do. You’re trying to keep me and Danny apart. Well, I won’t let that happen; you will not come between us again!!”

“You’re crazy!”

“Too bad, you won’t live long enough to get in between me and what I want,” he said, ignoring her comment.

Changing into his wolf form, he stood ready to attack and murder Lydia. As he was about to lunge at her, she screamed alerting not only Scott but Isaac as well. Without any hesitation, they ran out of the classroom right underneath the teacher’s nose as she continued to lecture her students with her back facing them. Stiles, who had followed them, wondered what the hell was going on. 

He would soon find out as they made it to the janitor’s closet with only minutes to spare. Scott, ripping the door open, found Jackson in werewolf form hovering over a bleeding Lydia. Growling at the sight, Scott transformed and threw Jackson out into the empty hallway as Stiles quickly got Lydia. He noticed her shallow breathes as Isaac scream for the two to stop fighting. They couldn’t do this here, not in public where a student would most likely find them. Isaac knew there was no way they could explain the situation if that happened.

The two betas, however, weren’t listening to him. Scott was too caught up in the fight and Jackson didn’t give a shit about who found out. It took Stiles reaching into his pockets for the mountain ash he kept there and using his intent on it, to stop them. As the powder made them revert back to human form, Scott glared at Jackson.

“We’ll finish this later.”

“Sorry, but you will have to wait until the dance for that;” Jackson replied with a smirk. ”But don’t worry Scott, you and your friends will be dead before you know it and Danny will be mine.”

Walking away, he left them and the bleeding Lydia behind. As Stiles fumbled for his phone, Isaac bent down to check on her. He felt for her pulse and noticed that it was becoming weaker. Stiles explained the situation to the dispatcher while Isaac began to talk to Lydia in hopes of keeping her alert. He spoke of likelihood of her winning the title of Winter Queen as the ambulance sped towards Beacon High School. He just prayed that they made it on time, they couldn’t lose Lydia; not like this.

It took several minutes for the ambulance to come to the school. Following was John after he received a call about the incident. Worried about his son, the Sheriff parked his car before running over to the scene. As the EMTS looked over Lydia, John approached Stiles, whose hands were covered with blood.

He knew that he could just tell his father another lie. Stiles, however, was tired of telling half-truth, his father had been there through thick and think. It was time that Stiles the truth, he just hope that his father didn’t freak out about the fact that werewolves were real. Whatever happened, Stiles knew that what he was about to tell John would change everything.


	27. Chapter 27

“What happened?” The Sheriff asked, looking directly at Stiles.

“Not here,” he answered, pulling his dad away so they could talk privately. 

Unaware that Scott had followed them, Stiles shuffled around a little. He stalled for a moment before John got annoyed. As Sheriff he had look at the scene of the crime. Although he wanted to know what Stiles had to say, he had a job to do. He needed to ask questions and secure witness testimonies. 

“Just tell me already,” John said in frustration. 

“Well, you know how there have been some really weird things going on lately...”

"You mean the mountain lion attacks?”

“The truth, dad, is that it wasn’t a lion,” he replied, wondering if it was too late to come up with a lie.

“Then what was it,” The Sheriff asked, getting impatient.

“Werewolves,” Scott said, answering in Stiles’ place. 

“No such thing,” John scoffed.

After glancing over to see that no one was paying attention, Scott shifted into his werewolf form startling the Sheriff. His expression went from one of shock to one of acceptance. If didn’t matter if Scott was a werewolf, John still loved him like he was his own son. Plus it explained all the weirdness that was going on in Beacon Hills lately. 

“Are you a werewolf too?” John inquired of his son.

“No, I’m still your average hormonal teenager,” he teased.

“There is nothing normal about you,” The Sheriff bantered back.

Then turning towards Scott, John waited for the teenager to transform back before gathering him into his arms. Hugging him, the older man whispered, “I will always be there for you no matter what.”

Of all things Scott expected from John once he learned about him being a werewolf, this wasn’t it. His mom had freaked out and he thought the Sheriff would react the same way. He, however, had taken it with great ease and Scott was thankful for John’s acceptance for his sake as well as Stiles’. 

“Thank you,” he said, with appreciation.

“No need for thanks for the, Scott,” John replied with a smile. “So who else is a werewolf and what exactly happened here?”

“Derek Hale, me, Jackson Whittemore, and Isaac Lahey,” Scott answered. As for who hurt Lydia, that was Jackson. “

“Why?”

“Lately, he has been acting strangely. I don’t know why but he wants to kill Stiles, Derek and me dead. He’s been plotting against us with Allison. We needed Lydia to help us.”

“I see. I wish you two had told me thing a bit earlier,” John said honestly. “It could have made this whole entire situation a bit easier.”

“I just did want to see you hurt, Dad. I was afraid that if I told you that you would be harmed or it would stress you out.”

“Stiles you should know that you could come to me with anything; even something as odd as werewolves.”

“I know that know,” Stiles replied with a smile.

“We’ll talk about this more later, right now I have a scene I have a process.”

As he joined his deputies and the EMTS, Derek joined Stiles and Scott. They watched from the distance while Lydia was put into the ambulance. Once the vehicle drove towards the hospital, Derek asked, “How did it go?”

“Better than expected.”

“Good, we could use him on our side.”

“How’s Lydia?” Stiles inquired, changing the subject.

“The EMTS were able to stop the bleed but she needs a transfusion. Otherwise, they said she should be fine.”

“That’s great news,” Stiles replied with some relief. He was glad they had gotten to her before Jackson could finish the job.

As they watched the scene unfold, John continued to look over the scene. He about to ask Isaac some question when he remembered something Scott had said. Apparently, Jackson was working with Allison Argent, Chris’ daughter. Did that mean the other man knew something he didn’t? Not only had his son had kept the whole werewolf thing from him but it seemed like Chris knew more than he had imaged. Angry that something Chris possible knew could hurt Stiles, John promised himself that he would ask Chris some questions before walking over to Isaac.


	28. Chapter 28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the gap between the posting of chapters but I have tennis elbow and thanks to too much typing at work; it was causing me some trouble.

Noticing the distressed look on the young teen’s face, the Sheriff knew he would have to be easy on Isaac when it came to questioning the teen. The boy was a witness not the culprit but he could understand why Isaac would be worried over his hurt friend. If Jackson was the one who attacked Lydia then John had no qualms about putting the teen in jail. He would just have to make sure to place him in a padded cell with lots of silver.

“Can you tell me what happened here?”

“How much do you know?” Isaac asked, not wanting to reveal what he knew until he was sure that the others had told the Sheriff the truth.

“Everything; including the fact you, Derek and Scott are werewolves,” John replied.

“And you’re going to accept it just like that?” He inquired, looking over at Scott. Isaac couldn't help but think about what Scott had told him about his mother; she had freaked out and ignored him for over a week for something that hadn’t been his fault.

“Yes, no matter what you and the others are, you deserve to be happy and safe,” The Sheriff spoke honestly. “Now what happened?”

“Lydia is the only other person we can trust beside Stiles, so we asked her to take Derek to the Winter Formal. He needs to be there as extra protection from Jackson and Allison.

Somehow Jackson found out about this and decided that Lydia was better off dead. So he attacked her. Luckily, we were able to hear her screams before he could finish the job,” Isaac said bluntly, turning his attention back to Stiles’ father.

“Can you think of a reason why Jackson and Allison want you guys dead?”

“Allison blames Derek for the death of her mother and possibly her grandfather. As for Jackson, I don’t know but he use to getting what he wants so I have a feeling that this has something to do with Danny and Stiles.”

“If it was supposedly Derek’s fault for these deaths, then why does she want Stiles and Scott dead?”

“Stiles, because she believes it’s his fault that Scott is a werewolf. Scott made her fall in love with him; even though he was a monster. Hell, she even tried to kill me for no reason. She’s dangerous, Sheriff, and a bit crazy. With Jackson’s help she might be able to carry out her plan.”

“Over my dead body,” he replied.

“I hope it won’t come to that but I do know that things around here might get out of hand especially when it comes to the Argents being involved.”

“I can guarantee that I will not just sit back and let Allison or Jackson hurt you guys.”

“I believe you, Sheriff, but I don’t think they are the only ones that we have to worry about.”

“Who?”

“Gerard... possibly Allison’s father.”

“I thought the old man was dead,” John said in disbelief.

“We have no way of knowing if he is; at the end of the fight we had with him and Kanima, his body just disappeared,” Isaac answered, glancing over at Scott again.

“You’re worried about him,” The Sheriff pointed out, realizing who Isaac was looking at.

“I love him, I don’t want anything bad to happen to him,” he replied just as Danny ran out of the front doors of the high school. After reaching Stiles, he took the hyperactive teen into his arms. “I am not the only one who feels that way.”

After smiling at the sight of Danny comforting Stiles, John thanked Isaac for his help before hopping into his squad car. He not only had questions that Chris needed to answer but it was vital that he got Lydia’s statement. Even though he wanted more clarification when it came to the whole werewolf situation, John had a job to do. No matter what happened he had to protect Stiles and his friends.


	29. Chapter 29

Once John was gone, Isaac jogged away from the crime scene over to the where the other boys were standing. Immediately, Scott took Isaac hand in his as soon as he arrived. Plans were placed on the back-burner as they made arrangements to go see Lydia at the hospital. She was hurt because of them and they were going to make sure she was alright. Ditching school for the rest of the day, they made their way to Beacon Hills Hospital.

As they made their way to see Lydia, Chris was about to leave his house when he saw a squad car pull up on his driveway before parking. He stood on the stoop as John got out and began walking towards him. Unaware that he wouldn’t be going anywhere any time soon, Chris unlocked his front door and waved the Sheriff inside. John tried to keep his face neutral as he entered the Argent’s house. As soon as the door closed behind them, Chris led the other man to the living room before asking, “is everything okay?”

“No, I have a few questions to ask you,” John answered, trying to keep his anger in check.

“About?”

“How about the fact you were keeping secrets from me all this time or should we talk about why Allison is trying to kill my son.”

“What?” Chris asked; the surprise evident in his voice. He had no clue what Allison had been planning to do to Stiles. Only that she hadn’t been herself lately.

“You heard me, Chris! You swore to me that you won’t keep anything from me especially when we decided to....”

“I was scared,” Chris interrupted. “But I swear, John I have no idea what Allison has been up to."

“I wish I could believe you,” The Sheriff said sadly before walking out of the house.

Once the door closed softly behind him, John quickly got into his squad car and drove away. Chris, however, stood immobile in his living room. He had just lost the one person that had made him happy since Victoria’s death. Chris never expected his relationship with John to go beyond one of friendship. Yet, something had changed between the two of them after six months of friendship. Suddenly, Chris began to look at John in a different light. The ex-hunter started to view the older man as a potential boyfriend instead of just a friend.

He never believed that he would fall in love again but John had a way of worming his way into one’s heart. He was a calming presence in Chris’ life and he in return wanted something more. It might have been only a year since Victoria’s death but he felt was ready to move on. After everything that happened, Chris believed he deserved a little bit of happiness in his life. So a few nights ago, over dinner and football game, the ex-hunter took a chance and kissed John passionately on the lips during half-time.

Instead of pushing Chris away, the older man kissed him back. It seemed that Chris hadn’t been the only one who was surprised by his feelings for another man. It seemed that John returned Chris’ feelings as well, even after seven years of being widower. After his wife's death, he had refused to go back to the dating scene. Not only could no one could ever replace his beloved wife but John never felt right about seeking somebody else to spend the rest of his life with. Besides, he had Stiles and for John that was enough.

Until, he met Chris and he brought back the spark that missing since his wife's death. The ex-hunter felt the same way and that night, they promised to take things slow. They also swore that they wouldn’t keep secrets from each other. Now that John knew the truth, Chris had a feeling their romantic relationship was over before it could truly begin.

In the time he tried to think of ways to win John back, a bloody and bruised Jackson met Allison in the woods; not too far from the burnt out Hale house. Not only had Lydia tried to fight back but Scott got in a couple of bites and scratches before Stiles stepped in. Jackson, who had pissed off by the whole Danny/Stiles situation, was angry enough to forget all about their plans for the Winter Formal and just attack them now. What happened with Lydia was just a prerequisite for what he could do. Unfortunately, for now Jackson had to keep his temper in check or it would ruin everything. Once the dance was over, however, all bets were off. He made a promise to himself that by the end of the night everyone would be ripped to pieces and Danny would be his.

Right now, he had a huntress to take care of. Allison might be beneficial to his plan but he couldn’t afford any more screw ups. Nothing was more important than getting rid of Stiles; not even Allison's life. In fact, Jackson could care less if she ended up becoming casualty in this little “war” he had started. She was just a means to an end; preferably the end of the werewolves who were standing in the way of him getting everything he had ever wanted. Once they were gone, he only would have more power once become the Alpha but Danny by his side as well.

“It looks like we might have to change our plans a bit,” Jackson smirked. “Lydia might be out of commission for a bit.”

“Was that really necessary?” After all, the others had talked Lydia into bringing Derek to the dance as her date. Isn’t that what you wanted?” Allison asked, wondering is she had done the right thing by seeking an alliance with Jackson. His obsession was beginning to wear on him to the point that Jackson was even crazier than she was.

“Of course, I did but she was doing to help them, not us,” Jackson pointed out, thinking he was making sense. “If she did it through our own terms, Lydia wouldn’t have died until it was all over.”

“She’s dead?” She inquired, truly upset for the first time since she started her insane quest for vengeance.

“That is none of your business! Right now there are things that we need to discuss that are more important than Lydia and her well being. Like the fact, you better shape up or you’re next! Now do you have everything in place for the dance?” Jackson asked, not caring that had threatened one of his closest allies.

“Yes,” Allison answered, if she didn’t do what he said, she would be as good as dead. She, however, was at the point of no return. There was nothing Allison could do now but to follow Jackson’s instructions to the letter.

“Good, if everything goes according to plan, then I just might let you live,” he said, before walking away.

As she watched him go, Allison began to wonder why she had teamed up with the likes of Jackson Whittemore. If it hadn’t been for her grandfather, Allison would be taking care of things herself. Gerard, however, believed that two soldiers for his cause were better than one. The old man, however, wasn't aware of how far Jackson would push them to get what he wanted.

Still Allison knew that Gerard needed the cocky teen. Once Derek, Stiles, and Scott were dead, he would have his revenge. Thanks to the dose of wolfsbane Scott had given him, her grandfather hadn’t been able to heal even though he had become a werewolf. It was only due to a powerful witch's magic that he was still alive. Thankfully once this was over; it would be Jackson who would have to watch his back. He had no clue what kind of danger his life was in, especially now that he had threatened Allison's life.

Leaving the woods, she went to debrief her grandfather. While she told Gerard all about Jackson and his promises, Scott, Stiles, Isaac, Danny and Derek arrived to the hospital. Lydia was in stable condition when the boys entered her room. She had a couple of bruises and scratches but most of the blood had come from a blow to Lydia’s head. Jackson had pushed her against the steel shelf that held the janitor’s cleaning supplies. Her head had bang against a jagged edge in the steel; the cut had taken several stitches to close. Thankfully, she was awake by the time the boys made their way into Lydia’s private room.

“How are you feeling?” A worried Stiles asked as Danny grabbed his hand.

“My head hurts and I’m really pissed off. I just can’t believe he tried to kill me! I loved Jackson will all of my heart; there was nothing I wouldn’t do for him but he just treated me like I was dirt. I thought it was because he was turned into a werewolf but the truth is he never treated me right. He was always waiting for someone better,” Lydia answered sadly. 

“Jackson is dangerous. He needs to be stopped before he hurts someone else. I can understand if you don’t want to help us anymore but we need you!” Derek replied, wondering if they had lost their only chance for victory against the likes of Jackson and Allison.

“I’m not too happy about what happened but I do know that this needs to be ended once and for all. If that means me taking you to the dance looking like this then so be it. Jackson needs to learn that he can’t always get what he want,” Lydia said angrily. “I’m tired of him treating me like some toy he can discard. I may not be a hunter or a werewolf but I am willing to help kick his ass!”

“That’s good because these guys are going to need all the help they can get,” a gruff voice announce from the doorway.

There stood Chris Argent in all his hunter glory. After Allison had come home from where ever she had disappeared to, she had told him all about Lydia. Breaking several laws, Chris tried to make it the hospital before John. Unfortunately, it seemed that he hadn’t been fast enough as John appeared in the hallway just a few minutes after Chris. 

“What are doing here?” The Sheriff inquired cutting anything else Chris was about to say.

“I want to help,” he answered nonchalantly.

“Get out of here, we don’t need and we sure as hell can’t trust you!” the older man exclaimed angrily.

“John...”

“Go, I don’t want to see your face here again.”

“Mr. Stilinski, with all do respect, we might need him,” Derek interrupted. “He’s helped us in the past and I hate to say this but he’s a good shot.”

“So am I, Mr. Hale and now that you have me, you don’t need him.”

“Dad...”

“No, he needs to go! His daughter is involved in this scheme and Mr. Argent has already shown to me that he can’t be trusted. How do you know that he isn’t on her side? He’s exactly neutral when it comes to Allison.”

“He’s right,” Isaac replied. “There is no way we can be sure that Mr. Argent is on our side.”

“I’m sorry, Chris, but the Sheriff is has a point, it would be better if you leave,” Derek said.

Frustrated, the ex-hunter hesitated for a moment before disappearing out the doorway. Once he gone, Stiles glanced at his father with an incredulous look on his face. He wondered what John had against Chris. He might not like the ex-hunter but he knew that Chris’ skills were invaluable. While he believed Derek’s decision had been the correct, Stiles wondering why his dad had treated Chris so harshly and why the ex-hunter had looked so hurt at John’s words. Was something going on that he didn’t know about?

“Is there something going on between you and Chris?” Stiles blurted out.

“Nothing you have be worried about. I just don’t think he should be involved,” John said, refusing to say anything more.

There was part of him, however, that wondered if he was being too hard on Chris. He had lied, sure, but so had Stiles. Why had he given his son a pass while he basically disowned Chris? Perhaps he expected the Stiles to lie but Chris had promised John that he wouldn't be keeping secrets from him. Teenagers were know to hide things from their parents, potential lovers, however, should be honest with their partner. Still it was hard for John to part ways with Chris but right now a broken heart should be the furthest thing from his mind. He had more important things to attend to. They had plans to changed and teenagers to save.

Winter Formal was quickly approaching and that meant danger was lurking for every corner. It wasn’t the time to thinking about love, disappointment, and hurt feelings. Now was the time for action. In the upcoming week leading the dance, they had to refine their plans for the Saturday night. They had to foresee every flaw before facing Allison and Jackson. They couldn’t know, however, that Gerard was one step ahead of them. To make sure that everything would go according his instructions, the older man had hired the most dangerous help he could find. They weren’t exactly human and they were much stronger than werewolves. Gerard Argent didn’t want a fair fight; he wanted to win so he had decided to hire Britlingens, the strongest mercenaries one could buy from another dimension. 

While Gerard could attack at any time, he wanted to wait for the big event. Unlike Jackson, he had patience. Soon, Beacon Hills would be rid of the likes of Derek Hale and Scott McCall. With them gone, the old man would move onto the next phase; taking over the town entirely. He just had to make sure that Jackson and Allison didn’t spoil his plans by jumping the gun and attacking their enemies before the allotted time. After all the Britlingens wouldn’t be arriving to their dimension before the dance and they needed their mercenaries to win. Even Gerard knew that Derek, Scott, and Isaac were unbeatable thanks to having people like Deaton, Stiles and Lydia on their side. If it hadn’t been for the veterinarian and Scott, he would have been an Alpha by now. Still Stiles was the heart and soul of the two so called packs; so he was going be the first casualty of their little war. He had ordered Jackson dispatch Stiles right away and if Danny got caught up during the mêlée; it wouldn’t be something that bothered him no that Danny wasn’t his. Jackson would be more lethal if he wasn't thinking with his dick. Danny was a distraction and

Gerard would do anything to win; even if it meant cheating to get what he wanted.

Meanwhile, after their planning session had ended with the others at the hospital, Stiles and John went home to their empty house. As the teen began preparing dinner, the Sheriff grabbed a beer from the refrigerator. After closing it, he twisted off the cap and sat down at the kitchen table. For a couple of minutes, John stared at the bottle before taking a sip.

Silence filled the tiny room until Stiles finally asked, “are you okay dad?”

“I’m fine, son,” he lied.

“No, you’re not,” Stiles said as he put the chicken into the oven. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“Not really,” John admitted.

“Too bad because I'm not really giving a choice in the matter. You're going to tell me what's going on with you,” Stiles replied, sitting across from his father at the table as the food cooked.

“You’re not going to let this go are you?”

“Nope, now spill! So you and Mr. Argent, are doing the nasty huh?”

“There is nothing really to tell. Believe me Stiles; I wasn’t looking to date again especially after your mother but then Chris...”

“What did he do dad?” Stiles asked curiously.

“He kissed me. After Victoria’s death we started talking; he was lost and I knew what he was going through. At first it was us just being friends and then it turned into something more. A couple days ago we were watching a hockey game when he kissed me. I kissed him back; I haven’t felt that way about anyone especially not since your mother died. Not that it matters anyone; it's over between us.”

“Is it because he lied to you? Why are you punishing him for something that was beyond his control? Besides, I didn’t exactly tell you the truth either. Don’t you think you’re being a little too hard on him.

“Maybe,” John admitted. “The truth is I’m scared of giving him my heart; not when he might break it. He already lied to me once, what’s to say he won’t do it again? As for you, I’m not happy that you were keeping the truth from me especially when you know you can come to me with anything. It makes feel like I’m failing you as a father.”

“I can’t promise you that he won’t hurt you but you should give him another chance. As for me, I was afraid that if you knew, that you would decide to help us out. I just didn’t want you to get hurt. Dad, I love you but I lost mom, I don’t want to lose you too. So no, it wasn't about you being a bad father, it was about me wanting to see you live to be old, gray, and wrinkled. I want my future grandchildren to know their grandfather and not have to visit some gravestone," Stiles answered honestly. “Werewolf business tends to be dangerous and people get hurt; I didn’t want you to be one of those people.”

“And you think, I want to see you hurt Stiles? You don’t need to be doing this either.”

“Yes, I do. It’s my fault that Scott is a werewolf, I need to be there for him,” the teen said, voicing his guilt over the whole situation. “Now are you going to call Mr. Argent or will I have to do it?”

“Fine, kid you win,” John replied, realizing that Stiles had purposely changed the subject to avoid things he didn’t feel like discussing with his father.

“That’s what I like to hear,” Stiles teased before checking on their dinner.  
He hoped that his dad could work things out with Mr. Argent. After his mother died, his father had become a walking zombie. A piece of his heart was gone and he had a hard time adjusting to the fact that his wife was gone. During that time John tried his best to be a good father but it wasn’t always easy putting on a brave face for Stiles when he was spiraling down into a deep depression. As much as John tried to pretend that everything was okay, Stiles knew it wasn’t. For years, they had been lost without the woman they both loved. It had been a difficult time for the both of them. Especially with Stiles’ panic attacks and John’s need to hide his pain in a pile of work. Somehow, however, they both made it through darkest time of their lives only to come out of it not only stronger than before but closer as well. Now, Stiles wanted nothing more than to see his father happy. If Mr. Argent was one to do so, then the teen was more than okay with that. Stiles just hoped that his dad took his advice by calling the other man.

On the other side of town, tired Chris sat on his couch and waited for his daughter to come home. He also waited for a call that he knew would never come. As much as he wanted John back in his life, he had bigger things to take care; Allison was one of those things. He couldn’t let her continue with her plan. Derek and the others might not want his help but that didn’t mean that Chris was about to let sleeping dogs lie. He wasn’t about to allow Allison to become a murder for the sake of revenge. It was time that Chris told her the truth about her mother. Perhaps, if he was honest with her it would stop Allison for becoming an accessory to murder. Maybe if Chris played his cards he would learn something helpful that he could pass along to Derek.

Allison, however, never came home for dinner. It wasn’t until the wee hours of the morning that she snuck into the house. Chris had been asleep on the couch when he awoke to the sound of the front door closing. Blue eyes opened to see his daughter dressed in her hunting gear; holding her crossbow. Unaware that she was being watched, she tried to tiptoe up the stairs. She was to climb up the first step when Chris made his presence known.

“We need to talk!”

“Can it wait until tomorrow?” Allison asked, trying to avoid whatever it was her father had to say.

In fact, she wanted to dismiss the fact that Chris had planned some kind of intervention for her. All that matter was the fact she was doing what her grandfather wanted. She didn't care what her father wanted; he was now the enemy as far as she was concerned. Chris was no better than Derek and his pack. He was a werewolf sympathizer who was betraying her mother’s memory. Oh, she knew all about John and she wasn’t too pleased about her father’s decision to date the older man. How could he forget his wife so soon, especially for someone like Stiles’ father? She wasn’t happy to say the least and if it wasn’t for the fact that Chris provided her with food, clothing, and a roof over her head, Allison would have moved out awhile ago. Although, soon living with her father might not even be a problem for her anymore. All it took was couple false reports on neglect and she would be moving in with her grandfather. Once the dance was over and their enemies were defeated, Allison would make sure that her father suffered for his betrayal.

“No, it can’t,” Chris replied.

“Why bother, it’s not like I’m going to listen to anything to have to say.”

“Not even if I told you why Derek bite your mother?”

“We all know why he did it; it’s because he’s a monster who deserves to be exterminated!”

“He did it to save Scott’s life. If it wasn’t for Derek, he would have died,” Chris said, ignoring her hateful comments.

“You’re lying and even if what you’re saying is true, she did for my safety! Scott would have turned on me eventually; I was just too naive to realizing that back then. Now I know better; he’s an abomination like the others. Mom was just giving Scott what deserved; death!”

“You can’t mean that!”

“I do! Grandfather has made me see the light and I will stop at nothing until every single werewolf and werewolf sympathizer in Beacon Hills is dead! She exclaimed before going up the steps. After arriving at the top of the stairs, she growled, “And don’t think that means you’re safe just because you’re family. Change your ways or you’ll be next.”

With the slam of Allison’s bedroom door, Chris knew that she meant every word she said. She was no longer his baby girl. She was now someone he had to fear. No matter what Derek and the others wanted; Chris wasn’t about to stand by and let his daughter murder him. He wouldn’t be going down without a fight and if that meant going against Derek’s wishes then so be it. He wasn’t about sit around and let his daughter continue her descent into madness. Chris had no other choice but to stop his father brainwashing Allison any further. Perhaps, he still had time to save his daughter from herself.


	30. Chapter 30

Allison, however, didn’t want to be saved and she didn’t care what her father wanted. She needed this; needed to follow her grandfather’s demands until death for her father’s sake. If Chris got hurt then so be it, she was done being daddy’s little girl. He had failed her over and over again until Allison couldn’t trust him anymore. Gerard’s truth was the only one she cared about now. It didn’t matter what he had done to her in the past not when she had finally knew the reality of having werewolves in the world. They killed to get what they wanted and humans were their prey. Allison couldn’t rest until werewolves were annihilated from the face of the Earth. So she would hunt every single one of them down; even the boy she claimed to love. She would have her revenge no matter the cost!

For tonight, however, Allison knew she couldn’t stay in her house any longer. After packing a couple of things into her backpack, she climbed out of her bedroom window and then scaled her way down from the roof to her car. As quietly as she could, Allison got into and drove away. She, however, was unaware that she was being followed. 

Chris, in anticipation to his daughter’s next move, had been sitting in SUV until her saw run to her car. Keeping his distant, he shadowed her until he reached his father’s hiding place. Now that he knew where Gerard was staying, he had some information to take back to Derek and the others. Maybe then they would be able to trust Chris enough to let him help them. He had been watching as Allison disappeared into a large sized house when his cell phone rang. Answering it, he kept his eyes on the building in front of him. Chris knew that soon, he would have to face the people inside.

“Hello,” he answered, wondering who could be calling him this time of night. When he received no answer only silence he tried again. “Hello… who is this...if you’re going to saying anything; I am going to hang up…”

“I shouldn’t have called,” John said finally, about to hang up. He wished that had decided not to listen to Stiles’ advice. After all they had only been trying this dating thing for a week and while things had been working out been the two of them, this whole werewolf thing had put a damper on things.

“Please John, don’t hang up. I know I made some mistakes but I don’t want to lose you!”

“I just don’t think things will work out between the two of us, not after this,” he answered honestly.

“Is this really because of my secret or is it something else, John. You have been hesitant about us since the beginning. So how much of it is you being scared of us being together?”

“To be honest, it’s both of those reasons. I have never been with anyone besides my wife and when she was alive we were always honest with one another. Maybe I am being too hard on you or maybe I am just not ready for another relationship but I have never been felt this way about another man before. Hell, it scares me in a way that being with my wife never did because what I feel for you is more intense. It scares me to death but Chris, if you are going to continue keep things from me then this relationship between us is over. I need to know that I can trust you.”

"I promise you John, that I will tell anything you need to know. Just give me another chance.”

“One more chance Chris, but if you screw it up, we won’t be seeing each other again, not even as friends.”

“I understand and I will do everything in my power to make things right between us again. John, I…”

“Chris, we need to take things slow. We’ll take it one day at a time and see where it leads us,” he said, interrupting the ex-hunter’s admission of love. 

“You’re right,” he replied with some disappointment. Even though they might be might dating again, Chris knew that he would have to work hard in order to gain John’s trust back. “We’ll take it slow.”

He was about to say something else, when he saw Jackson leave the house. Knowing this was his chance to take to his father and daughter without the little punk’s influence, Chris said to John, “I got to go, I’ll call you back later.”

“What’s going on?” The Sheriff asked with some suspicion to Chris’ current activities. 

“I followed Allison to my father’s house. I need to take to them.”

“Don’t go in there alone, you could hurt. If you going to do this then wait until either I or Derek goes with you.”

“I need to do this alone, John. They might not talk if you or Derek is there. I promise that I will be careful. Besides, they won’t do anything to jeopardize their little plan. If they hurt or kill me then their Winter Formal scheme will be ruined.”

“Fine, just tell me where you are and if I don’t hear from you in another hour, I’m coming after you to kill you myself!”

After giving driving back the cross street to give John the name of the road and the description of the house, Chris parked in front of his father’s hide out once again. Getting out his car, he took a deep breath before walking up the sidewalk onto the front stoop. Without hesitation, the ex-hunter knocked on the door; he was about to get some answers to all of his questions from Allison and his father.

Wondering about who could be at the door, Gerard cocked his rifled and looked out through the peep hole. He cursed as he recognized his son face. Gerard should have known that Chris wasn’t above following his own daughter so that he could find out where his father was hiding out. Since Chris already knew they were home, Gerard had no other choice but to open the door.

“Traders aren’t welcomed here, now go home Chris,” Gerard demanded.

“I’m not leaving, not until I get some answers!”

“Why should I tell you anything? You’re on their side, now go before I shoot you!”

“I need to know why you’re poisoning my daughter against me!” Chris said angrily, tried of his father’s games. He knew that Gerard didn’t make idle threats but Chris refused to leave without knowing the truth. 

“I didn’t do anything, boy. I just simply showed her the facts; she saw the brutality that werewolves cause with her own eyes. Once she saw the light, it was easy getting Allison to be on my side. She will become the hunter you never were! You were always disappointment, Chris. Your sister was the one who made me proud. She understood what werewolves are capable of. Kate saw that they needed to be destroyed them; you always cared too much about the code. Fuck the code Chris and fuck you. You are not worthy enough to have the Argent’s blood flowing through your veins. You care too much for those animals and their people, especially that Sheriff of yours. Oh, yes, Allison told me about your new lover. I thought I beat those proclivities out of you when you were a teenager. Now I can see that I was wrong. Victoria would be turning over in her grave if she could see you now; you disgust me! She was always too good for you! I should have marriage her off to someone else but I thought she would be a good influence on you; that she would make you see the werewolves for what they truly are; monsters. Instead, you got her killed. You are a failure Chris and you are no longer my son,” Gerard said before slamming the door in his face.

Having no other choice but to go back to his car, Chris didn’t spare a second glance at the house prior to getting into it. Pulling away from the curb, he drove as fast he could to the Stilinskis’ house. He wasn’t a crying man but after all the horrible things his father had told him, Chris felt like he was going to have a nervous break down. Gerard may be a hard ass with a bit of crazy mixed in but Chris loved him and it hurt him to be disowned by his own father. The pain he felt was too much for him and as he parked in his boyfriend’s driveway, Chris’ heart broke over the thought of never seeing his father or daughter again.

John had been waiting for the other man’s call when he heard a car pull up in the driveway. As the Sheriff glanced out of his window, he saw a figure slumped against his front door. Recognizing the face, a worried John opened it to find a red-eyed Chris standing there looking like he had just lost everything. Without a word John gathered the other man into his arms and hugged him. 

They stood there for a moment before the older man reluctantly pulled away as much as John would like to have Chris in his embrace; it was getting a little cold outside. Leading him inside, John took his hand and brought him into the living room. After Chris sat down on the couch, he went to get the ex-hunter some coffee. As he poured some in a mug, he hoped that Stiles was asleep. He had feeling that there were things that Chris needed to say that Stiles didn’t need to hear.

With that in mind, John left the kitchen and hard the steaming mug of coffee to Chris. He didn’t want to ask so he waited for Chris to be ready to take. Whatever was bothering the younger man, it was serious. For it was rare for Chris to have such a look of defeat in his crystal blue eyes. Something had happened with Gerard or Allison that was the only explanation for Chris’ appearance. Thankfully, John didn’t have to wait too longer for Chris to talk and when he did, it was like a dam had broke. Everything he had felt from childhood on with regards to his father spewed forth. That night he learned a lot about his boyfriend; things that broke his heart.

Since he was a child Gerard always preferred Kate to Chris. He never wanted to be a hunt but to find another line of work wasn’t possibility in a family like the Argents. It didn’t matter that Chris had a talent in art and music; all that matter to Gerard was teaching his son in the ways of war. Werewolves, legend, folk lore and training began his life and everything Chris loved pushed to the side. His son’s happiness was never Gerard’s concern, not even when he came out as being bisexual. Instead of accepting that fact that Chris had a boyfriend he truly loved in high school, Gerard beat him to the point of death and told him to never see Deucalion again. He, of course, abused Chris to the point where he did whatever his father wanted him to. Chris’ own happiness was forgotten just to make his father proud. Gerard had tried to mold him into be just like Kate, even if it was a detriment to his own son. 

Chris was still haunted by the images Gerard showed through out his childhood; movies that he had probably had shown Allison in order to get her on his son. He had nightmares night after night and yet he clung onto the code his father hated. Chris only killed rogue werewolves, leaving the ones who were innocent of any crimes alone. Gerard had failed to make just another cruel, psychotic hunter when it came to Chris and for that John was glad. He could never love a man who killed for the pleasure of it. He knew that Chris had do things in the line of duty but they were no worse than the things John did in the name of justice. As he sat there and held his boyfriend, he wished that he could take the pain of Chris losing his family from him but John knew he couldn’t. It was something he would have deal with in times. In the meantime, the Sheriff would make sure Gerard paid for his crimes, one way or another.

The next morning, Stiles found his father and Chris on the couch snuggling. As he gets ready for school, he thinks about everything that he had heard the night before. He knew he should have been eavesdropping but when he heard his father’s voice along with another’s, Stiles got a little bit curious about their middle of the night visitor. After hearing Chris’ story, Stiles knew he had to do something. It was obvious that had been wrong about not trusting the ex-hunter. He more reasons than anyone else to stop Allison, Gerard, and Jackson from causing utter chaos in Beacon Hills. He just had to convince Derek, Isaac, and Scott that Chris could be a trusted ally instead of a perceived enemy. Plus, they could certainly use all the help they could get. Stiles had feeling that Gerard was not the kind of person who liked playing fair. Winter Formal might be a little more dangerous than they thought. 

By the time he was driving to school, a million thoughts were flying through Stiles’ hyperactive mind. When he met up with Danny in the parking, the native Hawaiian could tell the other boy was distracted.


End file.
